LIBRA^RY 


Theological    Seminary, 

PRINCETON,    N.  J. 

BR  129  .P5  1845 
Pike,  J.  G.  1784-1854. 
Divine  origin  of 
Christianity 


THE 


DIVINE    ORIGIN 


CHRISTIANITY 


By  J.    g/pIKE, 

AUTHOR  OF    "persuasives    TO    EARLY    PIETY,"    "TRUE    HAPPI- 
NESS,"   "GUIDE    TO    YOUNG    DISCIPLES,"    "RELIGION 
AND    ETERNAL    LIFE,"    ETC.    ETC. 


NEW-YORK: 

ROBERT   CARTER,   58    CANAL   STREET. 
PITTSBURG:  68  MARKET  STREET. 

18  4  5. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

On  the  Importance  of  the  Inquiry  as  to  the  Divine 
Origin  of  Christianity. 

1.  The  importance  of  the  question,  "Is  Christianity  divine?"  arg'ued  from 
the  fact  tiiat  the  wisest  and  greate.-t  of  men  have  acknowledged  its  di- 
vine origfin — 2.  From  the  nature  of  its  discoveries — 3.  From  the  de- 
monstrable fact,  that  it  is  tlie  true  religion,  or  that  none  is  so — 4.  From 
tlie  mode  of  its  promulgation — 5.  From  the  multitude  of  its  martyrs — 
6.  Remarks  on  the  situation  of  infidels  and  on  their  desire  to  proselyte 
others      -.-.-....    5_i3 

CHAPTER    H 

Christianity  proved  to  be  from  God,  by  the  Miracles 
which  were  wrjught  in  Attestation  of  its  Divine 
Origin. 

1.  The  divinity  of  Christianity  argued  from  the  miracles  performed  in  its 
confirmation — 2  Tests  of  real  miracles — 3.  That  these  were  actually 
wrought,  argued  from  tlie  silence  of  its  enemies — 4.  Which  argument  is 
pursued  in  a  familiar  illustration — 5.  From  the  testimonies  of  its  ene- 
mies— 6.  Remarks  and  Reflections  on  those  testimonies — 7.  From  the 
testimony  of  suffering  friends  who  were  eye-witnesses  to  those  mira- 
cles— 8.  This  argument  strengthened  by  the  rapid  extension  of  Christi- 
anity ;  testimonies  of  Tacitus,  Juvenal,  Pliny,  Lucian,  Justin  Martyr, 
Tertulliau — 9.  This  rapid  spread  of  Christianity  more  remarkable  when 
contrasted  with  the  progress  of  modern  missions,  and  when  the  opposi- 
tion it  encountered  is  considered — 10.  Illustrations  of  the  spirit  and 
conduct  of  the  primitive  Christians    -----    13 — 67 

CHAPTER    m. 

The  Prophecies  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament  a 
proof  of  the  Divine  Origin  of  Christianity. 
1.  Remarks  on  prophecy — 2.  The  prophecy  respecting  the  Arabians — 3. 
Prophecies  respecting  the  Israelites — 1.  Prophecies  respecting  Nineveh, 
Babylon,  and  Ti're — 5.  Predictions  respecting  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ — 
C.  The  conversion  of  the  Gentiles — 7.  Their  subjection  to  Christ — 8. 
The  blessings  of  his  reign — 9.  The  permanency  of  his  kingdom — 10. 
Remarks  on  tlie  predictions  referred  to  in  sections  5  to  9 — 11.  Predic- 
tions of  the  Lord  Jesus  respecting  the  sufferings  of  his  disciples — 12. 
And  the  ruin  of  the  Jewish  nation — 13.  Prophecies  respecting  anti- 
christ ........    {)7_96 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    IV. 
The  Practical    Tendency  of  CHiiisxiANixy   an   Infalli- 
ble PROOF  OF  ITS  Divine  Origin. 

1.  The  argument  proposed— 2.  Tlie  tendency  of  Christianity  to  promote 
exalted  views  of  God,  proved  by  quotations  from  the  New  Testament — 
3.  Similar  proof  of  its  tendency  to  repress  evil ;  and,  4.  To  promote  the 
most  elevated  holiness — 5.  By  motives  of  a  description  peculiarly  its 
own,  and  of  the  most  powerful  and  elevating  kind — 6.  A  view  of  the  ef- 
fect that  would  bo  produced,  if  the  precepts  introduced  in  the  preceding 
sections  were  universally  obeyed — 7.  The  argument  pursued,  and  the 
conclusion  established,  that  Christianity  is  divine — 8.  An  objection  an- 
swered, and  the  argument  further  illustrated — 9.  A  peculiar  kind  of  in- 
ternal evidence  for  Christianity  pointed  out  .  -  -    96 — 131 


CHAPTER  V. 
The  Necessity  of  Revelation. 
,  The  excellency  of  Christianity  and  its  importance,  seen  from  noticing 
the  idolatry  of  heathen  nations,  its  absurdity  and  folly — 2.  The  abomi- 
nable nature  of  heathen  worship — 3.  Tlieir  cruelty — 4.  Their  philoso- 
phers as  benighted  as  the  crowd — 5.  Neither  amended  by  increasing 
civilization  and  refinement — 6.  The  philosophers'  examples  infamously 
vicious — 7.  Their  pride  infernal^B.  Abetted  suicide — 9.  And  hardness 
of  heart —10.  A  brief  view  of  some  principles  of  modern  infidels — 11. 
Practical  effects  of  modern  infidelity  ou  infidel  philosophers — 12.  On  the 
community — 13.  The  reader  urged  to  compare  the  apostles  with  heathen 
peilosophers,  or  modern  infidels — 14.  Brief  view  of  Mohammedanism — 
15.  Dying  testimonies  of  Christians  and  Infidels  -  -  -    131 — 153 


APPENDIX. 

1.  To  those  who  doubt  the  truth  of  Christianity— 2.  To  those  who  doubt 
its  peculiar  doctrines — 3.  To  nominal  Christians  —  To  the  sincerely 
pious 159—176 


THE 

DIVINE  ORIGIN  OF  CHRISTIANITY. 


CHAPTER    I. 


ON    THE    IMPORTANCE    OF    THE    INQUIRY   AS    TO   THE 
DIVINE    ORIGIN    OF    CHRISTIANITY. 

1.  There  cannot  be  a  more  important  question  pro- 
posed than  this  : — "  Is  the  religion  of  Christ  from  God, 
or  is  it  a  cunningly-devised  fable  ?" 

Many  remarks  might  be  offered  to  illustrate  the  over- 
whelming importance  of  this  inquiry.  The  following 
deserve  attention.  Christianity  has  been  acknowledged 
divine  by  the  wisest,  the  greatest,  and  the  most  talented 
of  mankind.  This  fact  is  not  brought  forward  as  an 
evidence  of  the  Divine  Origin  of  Christianity,  but  as  a 
fact  that  shows  the  unreasonableness  and  folly  of  neg- 
lecting to  investigate  its  evidences.  Bacon,  the  father 
of  modern  philosophy,  who  has  been  represented  as 
"  the  wisest  and  brightest  of  mankind,"  was  a  Christian. 
Newton,  the  most  distinguished  of  philosophers,  whose 
fame  spreads  through  an  admiring  world,  wrote  in  de- 
fence of  Christianity.  Locke,  the  deepest  of  thinkers, 
"  whose  office  was  to  detect  the  errors  of  thinking,  by 
going  up  to  the  fountain  of  thought,  and  to  direct  into 
the  proper  track  of  reasoning,  the  devious  mind  of  man," 
— Locke,  thus  qualified  to  judge  of  evidence,  in  his 
latter  years  studied  little  but  the  Bible.     Milton,  who 


G  WASHINGTON    A    CHRISTIAN. 

for  exalted  genius  stands  unequalled,  who  possessed 
a  mind  "  rich  with  all  that  man  over  knew,"  sung  in 
those  poems  that  will  hnnd  down  his  name  to  the  last 
period  of  time,  the  hallowed  themes  of  Christianity. 
Howard,  tlie  henevolent  friend  of  the  prisoner,  of  whom 
a  poet,  that  was  no  Christian,  writes : — 


-The  spirits  of  the  just, 


Wheu  first  arrayed  in  Virtue's  purest  robe, 
They  saw  her  Howard  traversing  the  globe, 
Mistook  a  mortal  for  an  angel  guest, 
And  ask'd  what  seraph  foot  the  earth  imprest. 
Onward  he  moves ;  disease  and  death  retire, 
And  murmuring  demons  hate  him,  and  admire. 

Howard  was  a  Christian,  and  Christianity  made  him 
what  he  was.  Washington,  the  patriot  whom  all  ad- 
mire, avowed  himself  a  Christian.  But  the  time  would 
fail  to  tell  of  Johnson,  and  Addison,  and  Jones,  and 
Boyle,  and  Hampden,  and  Russell,  and  of  thousands 
more  of  the  most  intellio:ent  and  distinc^uished  of  man- 
kind,  in  the  different  classes  of  society,  who  have  in- 
vestigated the  claims  of  Christianity,  and  confessed  its 
divinity.  Is  there  not  reason  to  think  that  religion 
may  be  true  whose  evidences  such/nen  have  investi- 
gated, and  whose  truth  and  divinity  they  then  acknow- 
ledged ?  Is  there  not  reason  to  believe  that  those  who 
treat  it  with  indilTerence  or  hostiUty,  really  know  no- 
thing respecting  its  nature  and  its  claims ;  or  are  un- 
wilhiig  to  submit  to  its  requirements  ?  Is  there  not 
cause  to  tliink,  they  deserve  a  reproof  similar  to  that 
given  by  Sir  Isaac  Newton  to  Dr.  Halley: — "I  am 
always  glad  to  hear  you  when  you  speak  about  astron- 
omy, or  other  parts  of  the  mathematics,  because  that 
is  a  subject  you  have  studied  and  well  understand  ;  but 
you  should  not  talk  of  Christianity,  for  you  have  not 
studied  it:  I  hace;  and  am  certain  you  know  nothing 
of  the  matter."*     Does  it  display  wisdom  or  folly  to 

*  Emlyu's  Life. 


IMPORTANCE    OF    CHRISTIAN    INQUIRY.  7 

treat  with  contempt  or  neglect  what  Bacon,  and  Mil- 
ton, and  Newton,  and  Locke,  and  Johnson,  and  Wash- 
ington, revered  and  loved?  Does  it  dis])lay  wisdom, 
to  profess  to  be  wise,  by  scorning  what  the  wisest  and 
most  distinguished  of  mankind  have  revered  as  the 
truest  wisdom  ?  Rather  does  not  such  a  course  dis- 
})lay  the  self-conceit  and  ignorance  of  the  most  de- 
structive folly? 

2.  Another  consideration,  illustrating  the  importance 
of  the  inquiry  before  us,  is  the  nature  of  the  Christian 
religion.  Christianity  challenges  the  attention  of  every 
reasonable  being ;  and  the  most  senseless  creature  in 
the  universe  is  the  person  who  refuses  to  consider  its 
claims.  Were  there  any  reasonable  doubt  of  its  truth, 
which  there  is  not,  such  is  its  nature,  that  it  imperi- 
ously demands  attention.  If  true,  (and  it  is  so,)  it 
contains  the  most  momentous  truths  we  can  possibly 
believe.  All  those  truths,  in  discovering  which  the 
wisest  of  mankind  have  consumed  their  days,  when 
weighed  with  it,  are  lighter  than  vanity.  For  if  it  is 
true,  and  should  a  careless  unbeliever  peruse  this  page, 
let  him  indulge  the  reflection,  the  God  whom  it  dis- 
covers is  that  awful  Being  whom  we  must  meet ;  the 
Saviour  it  proclaims  is  the  Judge  before  whom  we 
must  appear ;  the  judgment  it  foretells,  is  that  at  which 
our  doom  for  eternity  will  be  passed;  the  solemn 
scenes  of  the  future  world  which  it  discloses,  are 
scenes  we  shall  behold  ;  the  endless  life  it  has  brought 
to  light,  is  the  life  which  we  must  live  ;  and  either  the 
heaven  or  the  hell  which  it  discovers,  must  be  our 
portion  through  all  the  joyful  or  dreadful  periods  of  a 
boundless  eternity.  How  important  is  inquiry  respect- 
ing a  religion  that  spreads  its  influence  over  a  whole 
eternity !  which,  if  true  and  embraced,  leads  to  eternal 


8  CONFESSION    OF    A    DEIST. 

life  !  wliich,  if  true  and  rejected,  sinks  him  that  rejects 
it  to  eternal  damnation ! 

3.  Let  it  be  written  upon  your  heart,  that  the  Gos- 
pel is  every  thing  or  nothing  at  all.  If  false,  it  were 
nothing ;  if  true,  it  is  every  thing.  Nor  is  the  question 
between  this  and  some  other  system  almost  equal  to 
it.  It  is  this,  or  none.  If  this  be  not  divine,  none  is ; 
if  this  do  not  guide  you,  there  is  none  to  guide  ;  if  this 
do  not  comfort,  tliere  is  none  to  comfort  you  ;  if  this  do 
not  truly  display  a  Saviour,  there  is  no  Saviour  for 
you ;  if  this  do  not  truly  reveal  a  happier  world,  there 
is  none  to  reveal  it.  Without  Christianity  you  may 
know  you  have  a  Maker ;  his  eternal  power  and  God- 
head appear  in  his  works ;  but  you  know  you  are 
guilty,  and  if  the  Gospel  be  not  divine,  how  that  then 
unknown  Maker  may  treat  the  guilty  you  knoAv  not, 
and  cannot  know.  He  may  frown  you  into  nothing ; 
you  may  die  with  beasts  ;  or,  without  the  possibility 
of  escape,  burn  with  demons,  for  aught  you  know,  or 
ever  can  know,  unless  you  may  learn  it  from  the 
Bible.  If  Christianity  were  false,  you  are  a  creature 
without  a  guide,  a  sinner  without  a  Saviour ;  whose 
past  life  is  full  of  guilt,  and  whose  future  prospect  is 
full  of  doubt,  and  anxiety,  and  fear. 

A  deist,  who  suffered  death  for  high-treason,  not 
many  years  ago,  observed  to  a  fellow-sufferer,  just  be- 
fore his  execution,  that  in  a  few  minutes  they  should 
know  the  grand  secret ;  a  tacit  confession  that  "  shad- 
ows, clouds,  and  darkness,"  rest  upon  the  future,  in 
the  case  of  those  who  reject  the  Gospel ;  that  without 
it,  nothing  respecting  eternity  can  be  known.  How 
awful  is  such  a  condition  to  enter  eternity ! 

The  late  learned  Mr.  Jacob  Bryant  relates  a  circum- 
stance that  may  enforce  these  remarks.  "  \¥hen  I  was 
in  camp  with  the  duke  of  Marlborough,  an  officer  of 


ANECDOTE    OF    MR.    BRYANT.     •  V 

my  acquaintance  desired  me,  upon  my  making  a  sliort 
excursion,  to  take  him  with  me  in  my  carriage.  Our 
conversation  was  rather  desultory,  as  is  usual  upon 
such  occasions  ;  and  among  other  things,  he  asked  me 
rather  abruptly,  what  were  my  notions  about  religion. 
I  answered  evasively,  or  at  least  indeterminately,  as 
his  inquiry  seemed  to  proceed*  merely  from  an  idle 
curiosity  ;  and  I  did  not  see  that  any  happy  conse- 
quences could  ensue  from  an  explanation.  However, 
some  time  afterwards  he  made  a  visit  at  my  house, 
and  stayed  with  me  a  few  days.  During  this  interval, 
one  evening  he  put  the  question  to  me  again ;  and  at 
the  same  time  added,  that  he  should  be  really  obliged 
if  I  would  give  him  my  thoughts  in  general  upon  the 
subject.  Upon  this  I  turned  towards  him,  and  after  a 
short  pause  told  him,  that  my  opinion  lay  in  a  small 
compass ;  and  he  should  have  it  in  as  compendious  a 
manner  as  the  subject  would  permit.  Religion,  I 
said,  is  either  true  or  false.  This  is  the  alternative  : 
there  is  no  medium.  If  it  be  the  latter — merely  an 
idle  system,  and  a  cunningly  devised  fable,  let  us  eat 
and  drink,  for  to-morrow  we  die.  The  world  is  before 
us,  let  us  take  all  due  advantage,  and  choose  what  may 
seem  best ;  for  we  have  no  prospect  of  any  life  to  come ; 
much  less  any  assurance.  But  if  religion  be  a  truth, 
it  is  the  most  serious  truth  of  any  with  which  we  can 
possibly  be  engaged  ;  an  article  of  the  greatest  import- 
ance. It  demands  our  most  diligent  inc^uiry  to  obtain 
a  knowledge  of  it ;  and  a  fixed  resolution  to  abide  by 
it,  when  obtained.  For  religion  teaches  us,  that  this 
life  bears  no  proportion  to  the  life  to  come.  You  see, 
then,  my  good  friend,  that  an  alternative  of  the  utmost 
consequence  lies  before  you.  Make,  therefore,  your 
election  as  you  may  judge  best ;  and  Heaven  direct  you 
in  your  determination !     He  told  me  that  he  was  much 


10  EVIDENCE    OF    CHRISTIANITY. 

afTccted  with  the  crisis  to  which  I  had  brought  the 
object  of  inquiry ;  and  I  trust  that  it  was  attended 
with  happy  consequences  afterwards." 

4.  In  the  manner  in  wliich  Christianity  professes  to 
have  been  revealed  to  mankind,  there  is  something  so 
unspeakably  grand  as  to  claim  the  most  devout  atten- 
tion. If  an  angel  clothed  in  celestial  glory  were  to 
appear  upon  earth,  and  to  proclaim  to  all  the  inhabit- 
ants of  the  world,  that  he  came  to  bring  them  a  mes- 
sage from  the  Almighty,  hardened  as  men  are  in  sin, 
could  they  refuse  to  listen  such  a  messenger?  But  if 
Christianity  is  true,  that  was  published  by  a  messenger 
inexpressibly  more  awful.  No  mighty  angel,  but  He 
from  whom  all  the  angelic  hosts  derive  their  being  and 
their  bliss,  appeared  as  the  micssenger  of  his  Father's 
love.  Not  indeed  glowing  in  the  splendours  of  hea- 
ven, but  displaying  the  power  and  knowledge  of  a 
God  ;  and  letting  some  beams  of  his  divine  glory  shine 
through  the  veil  of  mortal  clay.  He  whose  hand 
stretched  forth  the  firmament,  and  formed  the  solid 
world,  is  represented  in  scripture  as  having  in  our  na- 
ture hungered,  and  thirsted,  and  wept,  and  bled,  and 
groaned,  and  died  for  man  !  What  arc  all  wonders  to 
this  wonder  !  What  all  that  astounds  the  human  mind, 
and  overpowers  its  faculties,  to  this  far  more  astonish- 
ing, but  most  delightful  fact ! — God  incarnate  for  mis- 
erable man  !  the  King  of  kings  a  servant !  the  Lord 
of  angels  a  man  of  woe  !  the  Holy  One,  in  whom  the 
Father  deliglitcd,  frowned  on  by  him,  because  loaded 
with  the  guilt  of  millions !  the  Giver  of  life  to  innu- 
merable multitudes,  a  victim  to  death,  and  a  tenant  of 
the  grave  !     Here  what  countless  wonders  meet ! 

5.  To  these  remarks  may  be  added,  that  another 
consideration,  showing  the  importance  of  the  present 
question,  arises  from  the  fact,  that  almost  innumerable 


CLAIMS    OF    CHRISTIANITY.  11 

iiuiltitudcs  have  laid  down  tlieir  lives  for  the  sake  of 
rclii^ion.  Though  sonic  deride  the  Gospel,  and  more 
neglect  it,  yet  multitudes  as  sensible  as  they  of  earthly 
comforts,  and  as  ready  to  enjoy  them,  have  shed  their 
heart's  blood  for  it ;  and  doubtless,  were  the  call  now 
made,  thousands  more  would  sliow  the  same  Christian 
courage  ;  would  again  throng  the  bleeding  way  to  hea- 
ven ;  and  once  more  prove  to  a  deluded  world  that 
religion  is  better  than  life.  If  a  hundred  men  were 
sent  to  Newgate,  then  tried,  condemned,  and  executed 
for  resolutely  maintaining  some  fact,  which,  if  true, 
would  be  not  more  astonishing  than  important  to  all 
mankind,  would  not  the  inquiry  from  one  end  of  the 
country  to  the  other  be.  What  was  it  for  Avhich  those 
men  suffered?  How  deserving  then  of  attention  is 
that  religion,  for  which  not  a  hundred  only,  but  thou- 
sands, and  literally  millions,  have  forsaken  kindred, 
and  country,  and  friends,  and  life  !  O  think,  it  is  not 
for  a  fable  that  myriads  have  bled  !  it  is  not  for  a  fable 
that  myriads  w^ould  bleed  !  O  hear  those  martyred  mil- 
lions as  it  were  calling  on  you  from  their  tombs,  and 
bidding  you  attend !  The  voice  of  their  sufferhigs, 
the  cry  of  their  blood,  poured  on  the  earth  like  water, 
is,  that  the  religion  of  the  Gospel  is  the  one  thing 
needful. 

6.  Before  we  pass  on  to  view  some  parts  of  the  di- 
rect evidence  that  supports  the  claims  of  Christianity, 
it  may  not  be  improper  to  remark,  that  the  situation 
of  infidels  is  such  as  naturally  prompts  them  to  deter- 
mined hostility,  and  leads  them  to  cherish  the  desire 
of  proselyting  others  to  their  ruinous  unbelief.  If 
Christianity  is  true,  not  the  slightest  glimpse  of  hope 
remains  for  those  who  continue  to  be  its  opposers. 
As  sure  as  they  exist,  perdition  must  be  their  portion, 
Mark  xvi.  16 ;  John  iii.  36.     If  Christianity  prove  true, 


12  MAKING    PROSELYTES. 

tlieir  wickedness  must  hereafter  appear  unutterably 
great,  in  rejecting  a  Saviour  so  glorious,  so  benevo- 
lent, possessed  of  so  many  claims  upon  their  hearts, 
and  ex]iil)iting  to  view  such  divine  compassion.  Hence, 
on  the  sup})osition  of  its  truth,  they  resemble  subjects 
engaged  in  rebellion  against  a  lawful  and  benevolent 
sovereign,  who  invites  submission,  with  promises  of 
mercy  and  favour ;  but  who  declares,  that  if  rebellion 
be  continued,  to  all  that  are  taken  in  arms,  no  quarter 
can  possibly  be  given,  or  mercy  shown.  In  such  a 
case,  those  who  would  still  be  rebels  would  rush  into 
determined  hostility.  If  Christianity  is  divine,  in  such 
a  hopeless  situation  does  every  one  stand,  to  whose 
view  its  claims  are  presented,  but  who  rejects  or 
slights  those  claims. 

Hence,  too,  will  spring  an  anxiety  for  making  pro- 
selytes. When  a  person  sets  himself  to  oppose  a  sub- 
ject of  general  belief  among  the  wisest  and  the  great- 
est, fear  that  he  may  be  mistaken  will,  though  unac- 
knowledged, at  times  steal  into  the  breast ;  and  to  an 
infidel,  the  least  possibility,  much  more  probability, 
of  tl.e  truth  of  Christianity,  must  be  dreadful.  But 
every  convert  to  infidelity  tends  to  prop  up  his  hopes 
that  Christianity  may  prove  a  fable,  and  that  the 
dreadful  judgment  it  announces  is  delusion.  Mr.  Cecil 
was  once  an  infidel.  He  remarks,  "  I  was  a  professed 
infidel,  but  then  I  liked  to  be  an  infidel  in  company 
rather  than  alone.  I  was  wretched  when  by  myself. 
These  principles,  maxims,  and  data  (those  of  Christian- 
ity) spoiled  my  jollity.  With  my  companions  I  could 
sometimes  stifle  them  :  like  embers  we  kept  one  an- 
other warm."  Young  reader,  are  you  tempted  to  in- 
fidelity? Do  companions  laugh  at  your  regard  to 
Christianity,  and  invite  you  with  them  to  throw  off"  its 
restraints  ?    O  pause  !    If  you  become  an  infidel  in 


MIRACLES    OF    CHRIST. 


13 


company,  can  you  be  one  alone?  Can  you  be  one  on 
the  bed  of  sickness  ?  Can  you  be  one  at  the  gates  of 
death,  and  on  the  verge  of  eternity  ?  If  you  can  be 
one  when  you  spend  an  hour  akine,  can  you  be  one 
when  you  die  alone,  and  when  you  go  alone  to  meet 
your  God  ?  Are  you  tempted  to  be  an  infidel  t  O 
pause  !  Think  of  the  awful  predicament  to  which  you 
would  reduce  yourself.  You  must  either  prove  that 
false  which  the  greatest  and  wisest  of  men  have  ex- 
amined and  acknowledged  to  be  divine,  or  you  must 
perish  for  ever.  You  must  either  demonstrate  that 
reliiiion  false  which  has  stood  unhurt  amidst  the  at- 
tacks of  heathens,  Jews,  and  infidels,  for  eighteen 
hundred  years,  or  you  must  sink  to  ruin  under  the 
horrid  guilt  of  being  the  wicked  opponent  of  all  that 
is  Godlike  and  divine.  You  must  prove  that  for  which 
millions  have  bled  as  martyrs  to  be  a  fable,  or  you 
must  be  condemned  by  Him  whose  grace  and  terror, 
if  true,  it  reveals.  Prove  it  false,  and  you  have  no- 
thing to  dread  from  its  Author ;  but  if  you  cannot  ac- 
complish this  hard  task,  you  must  live,  and  you  must 
die,  as  the  determined  foe  of  the  God  of  the  Gospel, 
laden  with  guilt  too  great  for  description  to  reach,  and 
deserving  of  ruin  too  dreadful  for  imagination  to  paint. 
O  pause  !  pause !  when  this  is  the  awful  alternative. 


CHAPTER    II. 

CHRISTIANITY  PROVED  TO  BE  FROM  GOD,  BY  THE  MIRA- 
CLES WHICH  WERE  WROUGHT  IN  ATTESTATION  OF 
ITS  DINIVE  ORIGIN. 

1.  One  of  those  powerful  proofs  which  attest  that 
the  Gospel  is  from  God,  is  found  in  the  miracles  that 
were  wrought  by  the  Lord  Jesus  and  his  apostles.    It 
3 


14  MIRACLES    OF    CHRIST. 

is  surely  needless  to  argue,  that  miracles  like  theirs, 
are  a  suflicient  proof  of  the  divinity  of  any  system 
they  attest.  Were  you  to  see  a  person  professing  to 
be  a  messenger  from  God,  give  sight  to  the  blind, 
speech  to  the  dumb,  hearing  to  the  deaf,  life  to  the 
dead,  could  you  doubt  for  one  moment  whether  his 
professions  were  true  ?  It  is  true,  the  juggling  tricks 
of  some  impostors  may  appear  strange  and  unaccount- 
a])le  to  persons  unacquainted  with  their  delusive  arts, 
but  impostors  never  restored  the  dead  to  life.  The 
miracles  ascribed  to  our  Lord  and  his  disciples  were 
of  such  a  nature  that  there  could  be  no  imposition  in 
them.  He  cured  the  sick  by  a  word,  even  where  the 
diseases  were  most  obstinate,  as  leprosy  and  palsy. 
At  his  command  the  blind  received  sight,  the  lame 
walked,  the  deaf  heard,  the  dumb  spake,  the  maimed 
(those  who  had  lost  a  limb)  had  their  limbs  restored, 
and  even  the  dead  arose.  He  walked  on  the  sea  ;  the 
winds  and  waves  hearkened  to  his  voice,  and  tempests 
grew  still  at  his  bidding.  He  exerted  creating  power 
when  five  loaves  and  a  few  small  fishes  fed  above  five 
thousand  persons.  The  miracles  of  his  apostles  were 
equally  great.  Diseases  fled  at  their  word,  and  the 
dead  came  back  to  life.*  Miracles  like  these  admit 
of  no  deception.  If  we  saw  a  person  stretched  life- 
less in  a  cofiin,  no  juggling  tricks  of  an  impostor  could 
persuade  us  that  he  had  called  the  departed  spirit  back 
to  its  feeble  tabernacle,  and  restored  the  dead  to  a  se- 
cond life.  If  we  saw  another  lingering  on  a  sick  bed, 
burnt  with  fever,  or  motionless  with  palsy,  nothing 
could  convince  us  that  he  was  restored  to  health,  un- 
less he  really  w  ere  so.  If  we  beheld  a  street  crowded 
with  persons  bearing  the  sick  on  beds  and  couches, 

"  I  conceive  it  needless  to  refer  to  the  particular  miracles  alluded  to,  the 
reader  cannot  peruse  the  New  Testament  attentively  without  noticing  them. 


MIRACLES    OF    CHRIST.  15 

that  the;/  miglit  get  them  healed  by  the  word  of  an- 
other, and  then  saw  those  persons  walking  back  to 
their  homes  in  perfect  health,  we  should  certainly  ex- 
claim, "There  is  no  imposition  here  !""  If  we  were 
walking  down  another  street,  nnd  beheld  the  sick  laid 
along  its  sides  on  their  couches  of  alHiction,  that  the 
shadow  of  a  man  passing  down  it  might  overshadow^ 
some  of  them,  and  then  beheld  these  rising  from  their 
beds  of  suffering  in  sudden  health  and  vigour,  what 
could  we  say,  but,  "  This  is  not  delusion !"  If  the 
dumb  suddenly  spake  to  us,  if  the  blind  looked  on  us, 
and  the  deaf  heard  our  voice,  we  still  must  acknow- 
ledge "  There  is  no  imposition  here  !"  Such  were 
the  miracles  of  the  Lord  and  his  apostles. 

Intidels  may  ask.  Where  is  your  proof  that  these 
miracles  were  wrought  ?  Are  you  not,  though  not  de- 
luded by  juggling  tricks,  deceived  by  narratives  of 
what  never  happened  ?  We  confidently  answer.  No : 
we  have  proof,  abundant  proof,  that  these  miracles 
were  wrought,  in  the  constrained  silence  of  our  Lord's 
enemies  ;  in  the  acknowledgments  of  some  of  those  en- 
emies ;  and  in  the  testimonies  of  his  sufferhig  friends. 

2.  The  opponents  of  Christianity  frequently  attempt 
to  confound  the  miracles  of  its  founder  and  his  apos- 
tles, with  the  pretended  miracles  of  the  Roman  church, 
or  of  some  wild  sects  in  later  ages.  Probably,  some 
unbelievers  are  unhappy  enough  to  be  so  prejudiced 
and  ignorant,  as  not  to  perceive  the  wide  distinction 
which  exists  between  them  ;  while  others  are  so  wick- 
ed and  ungenerous  as  to  endeavour  to  represent  the 
former  as  destitute  of  any  better  evidence  than  the 
latter.  Our  opponents  will  tell  us,  that  various  sys- 
tems of  acknowledged  superstition  have  had  miracles 
urged  in  their  support.  The  wide  difference  between 
these  pretended  miracles  and    those  of  Cliristianity, 


16  MIRACLKS    OF    CHRIST. 

has  been  demonstrated  in  a  way  wliivcli  infidelity  can 
never  refute,  by  Leslie,  Douglas,  and  Paley.  They 
have  pro})osed  various  tests  by  Avliich  to  try  the  ac- 
counts of  miracles.  The  miracles  of  Christianity  will 
bear  the  trial  proposed,  but  none  will  bear  it  besides. 
The  ft)llowing  may  be  represented  as  the  most  import- 
ant of  these  tests  of  examination.  To  evidence  a  mi- 
racle to  be  genuine,  the  account  of  it  should  be  pub- 
lished soon  after  the  miracle  occurred — it  should  be 
published  in  the  neighbourhood  where  the  miracle 
was  wrought — it  should  be  published  in  such  circum- 
stances as  to  secure  an  examination  of  the  fact  related. 
These  rules  must  commend  themselves  to  any  reason- 
able mind.  Tried  by  them,  the  miracles  of  popery 
and  of  paganism  cannot  stand.  Some  of  them  have 
been  published  long  after  the  time  when  the  fact  re- 
lated is  said  to  have  taken  place,  and  w^hen  all  oppor- 
tunity of  examination  had  long  since  ceased.  Other 
accounts  have  been  first  promulgated  in  distant  coun- 
tries, while  no  evidence  existed  that  any  knowledge  of 
such  facts  was  to  be  found  in  the  country  where  they 
were  said  to  have  occurred.  Many  are  stated  to  have 
taken  place  where  no  opportunity  existed  for  examining 
their  truth  or  falsehood — where  they  were  credulously 
believed  by  superstitious  and  deluded  men — where  no 
enemy  was  found  to  investigate  their  claims,  or  where 
a  hint  of  imposture  would  have  been  deemed  an  un- 
pardonable heresy.  Other  narratives  have  been  won- 
derful tales,  in  which  no  one  was  peculiarly  interested, 
but  as  far  as  human  welfare  was  concerned,  it  was  a 
matter  of  perfect  indifference  whether  they  were  re- 
ceived or  rejected.  How  different  to  all  these  were 
the  miracles  of  Christianity.  The  accounts  respecting 
them  were  published  on  the  spot^they  were  pub- 
lished soon  after  the  crucilixion  of  our  Saviour,  and 


MIRACLES    OF    CHRIST.  17 

while  miracles  by  the  hands  of  the  apostles  were  tak- 
ing place — they  were  published  in  the  midst  of  ene- 
mies— they  specify  places  in  which  miracles  occurred, 
and  gave  every  opportunity  for  full  investigation, 
while,  instead  of  its  being  a  matter  of  little  moment 
whether  they  were  received  or  rejected,  the  dearest 
interests  of  multitudes  were  connected  with  the  decision. 
3.  Under  these  circumstances,  a  povv^erful  proof  in 
confirmation  of  the  truth  of  the  statements  of  the  mi- 
racles of  our  Lord  and  his  disci])les,  arises  from  the 
constrained  silence  of  their  enemies.  The  most  effec- 
tual blow  which  they  could  have  given  to  Cliristianity, 
Avould  have  been  to  prove,  that  the  accounts  respect- 
ing these  miracles  were  false,  and  that  they  were  never 
wrought.  Modern  infidels  perceive  this,  and  therefore 
try  now  to  disprove  what  their  predecessors  in  unbe- 
lief did  not  dare  deny.  Yet  if  these  miracles  had  not 
been  true,  our  Lord's  enemies  had  every  advantage  for 
proving  them  false.  They  were  not  huddled  up  in  the 
dark,  like  the  tricks  of  popery,  but  were  wrought  in 
the  most  public  manner,  in  the  principal  towns  and 
cities  of  various  countries,  before  enemies,  and  some- 
times even  in  the  midst  of  angry  enemies  ;  were  per- 
formed in  various  instances  on  objects  well  known 
to  have  been  disordered,  and  were  exposed  to  the  most 
rigid  scrutiny  of  those  whose  interest  it  was  to  prove 
them  false.  Had  all  these  miracles  been  confined  to  one 
obscure  town  or  villaw,  there  mioht  have  been  cause 
to  suspect  imposture.  But  the  Lord's  miracles  were 
wrought  in  Jerusalem,  in  Capernaum,  and  in  other 
places  which  are  expressly  specified  ;  and  those  of  the 
apostles  in  places  hundreds  of  miles  apart.  Thus  in 
the  book  of  Acts  we  read  of  miracles  wrought  in  va- 
rious towns  and  cities  of  Judea ;  the  Lesser  Asia ; 
Greece,  including  Macedonia ;  and  in  the  Grecian 
2* 


18  FAMILIAR    ILLUSTRATION. 

Islands  ;  thus  exposed  to  the  scrutiny  of  thousands 
who  hated  Christianity,  how  can  we  account  for  their 
silence  in  not  proving  imposture,  but,  from  the  fact, 
they  knew  they  could  not  prove  it  ?  Let  us  imagine  a 
case  something  similar  to  that  in  which  we  are  now 
viewing  the  Lord  and  his  apostles. 

4.  Suppose  that  some  ancient  prophecies  had  led  our 
countrymen  to  expect  that  some  one  should  arise  who 
should  prove  their  greatest  benefactor ;  that  about  the 
appointed  time,  a  person  did  appear  professing  to  be 
the  man  they  expected  ;  that  he  had  spent  a  few  years 
teaching,  and  professing  to  work  miracles  ;  but  that  the 
government  and  people  disliking  him,  he  had  been  put 
to  death.  Suppose  after  this  that  some  of  his  disciples 
had  travelled  through  the  British  islands,  professing 
also  to  work  miracles,  and  that  they  had  also  gone 
through  France,  Spain,  Italy,  and  Germany,  making 
the  same  professions.  Suppose  that  then  some  of 
these  persons  were  to  write  an  account  of  the  life  of 
their  founder ;  and  of  the  travels  of  his  disciples,  in 
which  they  ascribed  miracles  to  them.  If  they  said 
all  these  miracles  were  wrought  in  some  obscure  vil- 
lage in  the  highlands  of  Scotland,  or  in  a  valley  among 
the  Alps,  the  reader  might  suspect  the  truth  of  the  ac- 
count ;  but  if,  instead  of  this,  they  stated  that  these 
miracles  were  wrought  in  the  most  public  places,  before 
even  angry  enemies,  who  wished  to  prove  them  false, 
and  could  not,  must  not  the  reader  then  allow  them  to 
be  miracles  of  a  truth  ?  Suppose  it  were  stated  that  he 
had  restored  to  life  the  daughter  of  the  lord  mayor  of 
London  ;  that  he  had  raised  from  the  edge  of  the  grave 
the  son  of  the  governor  of  Dover  castle  ;  that  in  differ- 
ent churches  in  Bristol  he  had  healed  several  diseased 
persons ;  that  going  into  Canterbury  he  had  met  a  fu- 
neral, and  called  the  dead  out  of  the  coffin ;  that  at  Is- 


FAMILIAR    ILLUSTRATION.  19 

lington,  in  tne  sight  of  friends  and  enemies,  lie  liad  or- 
dered another  dead  man  out  of  liis  g^rave  ;  tliat  npon 
this  the  privy-council  liad  met,  and  determined  that  it 
were  needful  to  destroy  him,  and  that  even  the  king 
himself  had  said,  "It  is  expedient  that  one  man  should 
die  for  the  people."  Suppose  further,  that  the  history 
stated,  that,  when  officers  were  sent  to  apprehend  him, 
struck  by  an  invisible  pov/er,  they  went  backward,  and 
fell  to  the  ground  ;  that  one  of  them  having  his  ear  cut 
ofl',  their  prisoner  had  touched  his  ear  and  healed  him. 
Suppose  further,  that  it  were  staled,  that  he  had  suiTered 
on  Tower-hill ;  and  that  when  he  suffered,  all  nature 
seemed  convulsed  ;  that  darkness  at  noon  covered  Lon- 
don ;  that  various  graves  were  opened  ;  that  rocks  rent ; 
and  that  the  wails  of  St.  Paul's  church  were  split  in  two 
from  the  top  to  the  bottom.  Suppose  further,  that  the 
history  stated,  that  this  man  had  said  he  should  rise  from 
the  dead  ;  and  that  the  government  sealed  up  his  tomb, 
and  set  sixty  soldiers  to  vv^atch  it,  but  that  nevertheless 
he  had  risen ;  that  his  enemies  said  his  disciples  had 
stolen  his  body  ;  that  in  a  few  days  one  of  those  disciples 
healed  a  cripple  who  had  sat  as  a  beggar  for  3'^ears  at 
the  gates  of  St.  Paul's  cathedral ;  and  that  he,  and  some 
fellow-disciples,  for  preaching  in  their  master's  name, 
were  brought  before  the  privy-council ;  that  these  men, 
undaunted,  charged  the  king  and  council,  with  having 
murdered  their  master,  and  declared  to  them,  tliat,  in- 
stead of  the  account  published  by  thera  being  true,  that 
his  body  was  stolen,  God  had  raised  him  from"  the  dead ; 
that  the  council,  instead  of  charging  them  with  false- 
hood and  imposture,  had  tamely  sunk  under  the  charge 
exhibited  against  themselves,  and  let  these  men  go  ; 
suppose  that  the  object  of  these  men  vi^ere  such,  that  it 
would  overthrow  the  whole  ecclesiastical  establish- 
ment ;  and  would  deprive  those  who  were  supported 


20  FAMILIAR    ILLUSTRATION. 

by  it  of  tlu'ir  innnciice,  wealth,  and  power;  and  that 
they  wore  rapidly  j^ropclyting  multitudes  ;  suppose  that 
the  ffovenniient  hated  these  men  ;  and  occasionally  put 
one  and  other  of  them  to  death,  but  never  tried  to  dis- 
prove honourably  and  openly  the  truth  of  their  history ; 
would  not  this  silence  of  theirs  be  almost  proof  enough 
that  the  liistory  were  true  ?  Would  not  every  reasona- 
ble man  say,  If  it  be  false,  why  do  they  not  show  it  to  be 
so  ?  it  may  be  easily  done.  Was  that  child  raised  from 
death  in  London?  and  that  from  the  bed  of  death  at 
Dover  ?  Was  the  man  raised  at  Islington  ?  Did  they 
examine  into  this  before  the  privy-council  ?  if  they  did, 
and  found  it  false,  why  do  not  they  say  so,  instead  of 
letting  those  men  proselyte  their  thousands  ? 

Apply  this  mode  of  reasoning  to  the  case  of  our 
Lord  and  his  apostles.  If  the  accounts  of  their  mira- 
cles were  not  true,  why  did  not  their  enemies  prove 
their  statements  false  ?  His  friends,  passing  over  many 
other  instances,  record  that  he  healed  persons  in  A^ari- 
ous  synagogues  ;  that  at  Capernaum  he  raised  from 
the  dead  the  daughter  of  Jairus,  a  ruler  of  the  syna- 
gogue ;  and  there  restored  from  the  edge  of  the  grave 
the  servant  of  a  centurion ;  that  entering  Nain  he 
raised  to  life  a  dead  man  whose  funeral  he  met ;  that 
he  fed  five  thousand  men  at  one  time,  and  four  thou- 
sand at  another,  with  a  few  loaves  and  small  fishes  ; 
that  at  the  pool  of  Bethesda  in  Jerusalem,  he  raised  to 
health  a  man  diseased  thirty-eight  years ;  and  cured 
in  the  same  city  one  that  was  born  bhnd  ;  that  in  the 
neighbouring  village  of  Bethany,  he  raised  Lazarus 
from  the  grave ;  that  the  Jews  called  a  council,  and 
the  high-priest  spoke  of  it  as  expedient,  innocent  as 
he  was,  to  put  him  to  death  ;  that  when  officers  went 
to  apprehend  him,  at  his  word  they  went  backwards 
and  fell  to  the  ground  ;  that  when  anorehended  he 


FAMILIAR    ILLUSTRATION.  21 

healed  the  servant  whose  ear  Peter  cut  off;  that  wiien 
he  v/as  criiciiied  darkness  covered  the  land ;  tliat  the 
rocks  rent ;  that  the  graves  opened  ;  that  the  dead 
arose  ;  and  that  the  vail  of  that  ])oasted  and  valued 
temple,  which  his.enemies  had  under  their  own  keep- 
ing, was  rent  in  twain.  The  second  history  adds, 
that  after  his  resurrection,  his  powerful  enemies  spread 
ci  report  that  the  disciples  had  stolen  his  body ;  that 
one  of  those  disciples,  having  restored  a  man  lame 
from  his  birth,  was  with  his  companion,  apprehended, 
imprisoned,  and  brought  before  the  supreme  council ; 
that  there  the  disciples  charged  the  council  with  hav- 
ing murdered  the  Lord  of  Life,  and  declared,  that  God 
had  raised  him  from  the  dead ;  that  they  tamely  in  ef- 
fect submitted  to  the  charge,  and  thus,  by  their  silence, 
in  fact,  confessed  the  falsehood  of  the  report  which 
they  had  invented.  The  history  also  states  that 
speedily  after  this  the  apostles  were  imprisoned ;  and 
were  to  be  brought  again  before  the  council  and  senate 
of  Israel  the  next  morning,  but  that  when  the  morn- 
ing came,  the  officers  found  the  prison  fast  and  the 
keepers  watching  the  doors,  but  all  the  apostles  gone ; 
that  they  found  them  in  the  temple  teaching  the  peo- 
ple ;  and  that  when  the  chief  priests  and  other  princi- 
pal men  among  the  Jews  heard  these  things  they 
doubted  what  would  be  the  issue.  Christianity  was 
so  opposed  to  the  corrupt  practices  of  the  Jewish 
priests  and  rulers,  that  their  wealth,  their  honour,  and 
their  influence  were  at  stake ;  why  then,  except  be- 
cause they  could  not,  did  they  not  prove  these  state- 
ments fidse?  and  hand  that  proof  down  to  their  pos- 
terity. Why  did  they  not  say  and  prove.  Your  his- 
tory is  false  ;  your  Jesus  never  cured  any  person  in 
our  synagogues  ;  he  raised  no  daughter  of  Jairus  ;  he 
cured  no  centurion's  servant  at  Capernaum  ;  he  raised 


OO  FAMII.IAK     ILLUSTRATION. 

no  widow's  soil  at  the  entrance  of  Nain ;  he  never  fed 
thousands  with  a  few  loaves  and  fislies  ;  he  cured  no 
diseased  man  at  the  pool  of  Bethcsda  ;  nor  did  he  in 
Jerusalem  ^:ive  sig-lit  to  a  man  horn  blind  ;  nor  did  the 
Pharisees  hold  any  consultation  on  such  a  case ;  he 
did  not  raise  Lazarus  at  Bethany  ;  we  held  no  council 
on  the  suhjcct ;  nor  did  Caiaphas  utter  any  sentiment 
so  o])j)osed  to  our  law  and  his  office,  as  that  an  inno- 
cent man  miirht  be  put  to  death  for  public  good.  It 
is  true,  your  Jesus  was  put  to  death,  but  the  officers 
sent  to  apprehend  him  did  not  in  a  body  go  back- 
wards and  fall  to  the  ground,  wlien,  after  their  decla- 
ration that  they  sought  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  he  said,  "  I 
am  he ;"  he  did  not  heal  the  ear  of  the  high-priest's 
servant ;  nor  did  darkness  cover  the  land  when  he  was 
crucified ;  nor  did  the  rocks  rend ;  nor  was  the  vail 
of  the  temple  rent  in  twain ;  nor  did  Peter  restore  a 
lame  beggar  at  the  gate  of  the  temple  ;  nor  did  the  dis- 
ciples charge  us  with  having  murdered  him,  and  we 
silently  submit  to  the  charge ;  nor  did  they  declare  to 
us  that  God  had  raised  him,  and  our  silence  allow  the 
fact ;  nor  did  we  imprison  the  disciples,  and  our  offi- 
cers the  next  morning  find  the  keepers  watching  an 
empty  prison,  and  the  prisoners  they  thought  they 
were  guarding  preaching  in  the  temple :  your  history 
is  f\dse.  Had  they  tried  to  give  such  an  answer  as 
this,  they  had  come  to  the  point ;  they  had  acted  like 
men  :  but  they  did  not  give  it ;  and  the  only  rational 
supposition  is,  because  they  could  not.  Had  the  per- 
sons referred  to  in  these  statements  been  obscure  in- 
dividuals, their  silence  v/ould  have  been  inexplicable 
on  any  ground  except  their  inability  to  offer  a  reply ; 
but  let  it  never  be  forgotten  that  in  the  case  before  us 
the  governors  of  the  Jewish  nation  were  partly  the 
actors.     They  hated  the  apostles,  they  pursued  some 


TESTIMONIES    OF    ENEMIES.  23 

t  them  to   death;  thus   they  eviiifced  their  wish  to 

rush  the  risins;  relioion ;  but  they  stood  not  forward 

and  boklly   maintained — these    statements    arc  false. 

They  evidently  dared  not  bring  the  matter  to  this  issue. 

5.  Proof  to  the  authenticity  and  divinity  of  the  Gos- 
pel may  also  be  adduced  from  the  testimony  of  its  en- 
emies. The  Jews,  instead  of  disproving  the  Saviour's 
miracles,  charged  him  with  learning  magical  arts  in 
Egypt.  In  the  Gemara  it  is  said,  "  Did  not  the  son  of 
Stada"  (a  name  they  a])plied  to  Jesus)  "bring  magical 
arts  out  of  Egypt  in  a  cutting  in  his  flesh  ?"*  In  the  Je- 
rusalem Talmud  it  is  said,  that  a  child  who  had  swal- 
lowed poison  was  healed  when  a  man  came  and  pro- 
nounced some  words  in  the  name  of  Jesus ;  but  that  a 
rabbi,  his  grandfather,  preferred  his  dying  to  his  being 
thus  healed.  Elsewhere  in  Jewish  writings  it  is  said, 
that  by  virtue  of  the  name  Shem  Hamephorash,  which 
he  stole  out  of  the  temple,  he  raised  the  dead,  and 
walked  upon  the  waters,  and  cured  the  lame,  and 
cleansed  the  lepers. f 

Tertullian  appeals  to  the  Jews  themselves  on  their 
not  denying  the  miracles  of  Christ ;  an  appeal  which 
it  would  have  been  madness  to  make  if  he  knew  that 
the  fact  of  the  case  was  exactly  contrary.  "  Ye  do 
not,"  says  he,  "disallow  the  mighty  works  done  by- 
Christ,  for  you  yourselves  said  it  was  not  for  his  works 
that  ye  stoned  him,  but  because  he  did  these  things  on 
the  sabbath-day." 

The  testimonies  of  heathens  are  more  numerous. 
Suetonius,  writing  of  Nero,  whose  reign  ended  in  a.  d. 
68,  says,  "  The  Christians  were  punished,  a  sort  of  men 
of  a  new  and  magical  superstition."  Celsus,  a  heathen 
philosopher,  and  bitter  enemy  to  the  gospel,  wrote  a 
book  .against  Christianity  in  the  second  century.     He 

*  Lardaer's  Jewish  Testimonies,  cap.  5.     t  Raymondi  Pugo  Fidel,  p.  290. 


24  TESTIMONIES    OF    ENEMIES. 

wrote  early,  ns  he  snys,  "  It  is  but  a  few  years  since  he  " 
(Jesus)  "  delivered  this  doctrine,  who  is  now  reckoned 
by  the  Christians  to  be  the  Son  of  Ciod."  Respecting 
his  testimony,  Bryant  says,  "Many  of  the  principal 
passafjes  in  the  evangelists  and  apostles,  as  well  as  in 
the  Old  Testament,  are  either  quoted,  or  alluded  to,  by 
him.  He  speaks  of  Moses  and  the  creation  ;  and  refers 
often  to  the  prophets.  He  speaks  also  of  Christ  and 
his  incarnation  ;  and  of  his  being  born  of  a  virgin  ;  and 
mentions  his  flight  into  Egypt.  He  acknowledges,  that 
his  disciples  looked  upon  him  as  a  divine  personage, 
and  accordingly  worshipped  him  as  the  Son  of  God. 
He  alludes  frequently  to  the  Holy  Spirit ;  and  men- 
tions God  under  the  title  of  the  Most  High ;  and  speaks 
collectively  of  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  as 
transmitted  by  the  evangelists.  He  does  not  deny  the 
miracles  of  Christ  nor  of  his  apostles ;  but  attributes 
them  to  magic.  Lastly,  the  crucifixion  of  our  Saviour, 
his  death,  resurrection,  and  his  appearing  to  his  disci- 
ples afterAvards,  together  with  the  darkness,  and  earth- 
quake, at  his  decease,  are  mentioned  by  him.  It  is 
true,  he  continually  objects  and  disbelieves.  But  those 
very  objections  prove,  that  these  histories  and  doc- 
trines existed,  and  must  necessarily  have  been  antece- 
dent to  his  cavils,  which  is  all  that  we  want  to  know 
from  him."* 

Doddridge,  referring  to  the  testimony  of  Celsus,  ob- 
serves, that  an  enumeration  of  the  particulars  in  the  life 
of  Christ  referred  to  by  him,  would  almost  form  an 
abridgement  of  the  evangelists'  history.  Among  other 
facts,  Celsus  refers  to  the  following :  he  says,  "  that 
Jesus,  who  was  represented  as  the  Word  of  God,  and 
who  was  the  author  of  the  Christian  name,  and  also 

*  See  Bryant  on  the  authenticity  of  scripture,  with  references  to  the  passages 
quoted  from  Celsus. 


TESTIMONIES    OF    ENEMIES.  25 

called  himself  the  Son  of  God,  was  a  man  of  Nazareth  ; 
that  he  was  the  reputed  son  of  a  carpenter  ;  that  when  he 
was  born,  a  star  appeared  in  the  east  to  certain  magii, 
who  came  to  adore  him  ?  the  consequence  of  which  was 
the  slaughter  of  the  infants  by  Herod."  He  calls  Christ 
himself  a  carpenter,  and  reproaches  his  mean  life,  and 
his  gathering  up  ten  or  twelve  poor  men,  publicans  and 
men  that  used  the  sea.  He  grants  that  Christ  wrought 
miracles,  and  particularly  that  he  cured  some  sick 
people;  raised  some  that  were  dead,  and  multii)lied 
some  loaves  ;  but  speaks  of  others  doing  the  like. 
He  also  expressly  mentions  his  curing  the  lame  and 
the  blind ;  and  his  raising  the  dead  is  mentioned  u  se- 
cond time.  He  speaks  of  Jesus  as  betrayed  by  his 
disciples  and  forsaken,  as  ignominiously  bound,  as 
scourged,  as  crowned  with  thorns,  with  a  reed  in  his 
hand,  and  arrayed  in  a  scarlet  robe,  and  as  condemned  ; 
as  having  gall  given  him  to  drink  when  he  was  led 
away  to  punishment ;  as  shamefully  treated  in  the 
sight  of  the  world  ;  as  distended  on  the  cross.  He 
derides  Christ  for  not  exerting  his  divinity  to  punish 
those  outrages;  as  taking  no  vengeance  on  his  ene- 
mies ;  as  incapable  to  deliver  himself,  and  not  deliv- 
ered by  his  Father  in  his  extremity.  He  also  insults 
Jesus  for  suffering,  and  yet  praying,  O  Father,  if  it  be 
possible,  let  this  cup  pass  away.  After  mentioning 
many  other  circumstances  of  the  evangelic  history  to 
which  this  early  opponent  of  the  Gospel  refers,  Dod- 
dridge adds,  "Upon  the  whole,  there  are  in  Celsus 
about  eighty  quotations  from  the  book  of  the  New 
Testament,  or  references  to  them,  of  which  Origen 
has  taken  notice.  And  Avhile  he  argues  from  them, 
sometimes  in  a  very  perverse  and  malicious  manner, 
he  still  takes  it  for  granted,  as  the  foundation  of  his 
argument,  that  whatever  absurdities  could  be  fastened 
3 


26  TESTIMONIES    OF    ENEMIES. 

upon  any  words  or  actions  of  Christ  recorded  in  the 
Evantrclists,  it  would  be  a  valid  objection  against 
ChrisHanity ;  thereby,  in  effect,  assuring  us  not  only 
that  such  a  book  did  really  exist,  but  that  it  was  uni- 
versally received  by  Christians  in  those  times  as  credi- 
ble and  divine."* 

His  attributing  our  Lord's  miracles  to  magic,  must 
be  more  minutely  noticed.  In  one  place  he  says,  that 
Jesus  served  in  Egypt,  "  and  having  there  learned  some 
charms,  such  as  the  Egyptians  are  fond  of,  he  returned 
home;  and  then  valuing  himself  upon  those  charms 
(powers,)  he  set  up  himself  for  a  god."  Elsewhere 
he  represents  that  Christians  assigned  as  one  reason 
for  their  believing  that  Christ  was  "  the  Son  of  God, 
because  he  cured  the  halt  and  the  blind  ;"  nor  does  he 
deny  the  fact. 

Origen  says,  "Celsus,  well  knowing  what  great 
works  may  be  alleged  to  have  been  done  by  Jesus, 
pretends  to  grant  that  the  things  related  of  him  are 
true,  such  as  healing  diseases,  raising  the  dead,  feed- 
ing multitudes  with  a  few  loaves,  of  which,  likewise, 
large  fragments  were  left,  and  whatever  other  things 
the  disciples,  who,  as  he  thinks,  delighted  in  strange 
things,  have  written;  and  then  adds  'Well,  then,  let 
us  grant  that  all  these  things  were  done  by  you.'" 
After  this,  he  mentions  the  tricks  of  some  impostors, 
and  asks,  "  Because  they  do  such  things,  must  we 
therefore  esteem  them  to  be  God's  sons  ?  or  must  we 
not  rather  say,  that  these  are  artifices  of  wicked  and 
miserable  men  ?"  Celsus  here  allows  that  the  works 
ascribed  to  Christ  were  as  apparently  done  by  him  as 
the  tricks  of  impostors  are  done  by  them.  He  thus 
admits  the  accounts  of  the  Lord's  miracles ;  the  ques- 
tion therefore  is,  could  magical  arts  heal  the  sick,  give 

*  Doddridge  in  Lardner,  article  Celsus. 


TESTIMONIES    OF    ENEMIES.  27 

sight  to  the  blind,  and  life  to  the  dead  ?  or  was  it  pos- 
sible for  miracles  so  publicly  wrought,  to  be  the  tricks 
of  impostors?  On  this  subject,  Origen  observes, 
"  Celsus  not  being  able  directly  to  deny  the  great 
works  which  Jesus  is  recorded  to  have  done,  asperses 
them,  and  calls  them  juggling  tricks."* — "  You  see  that 
Celous  in  a  manner  allows  thai  there  is  such  a  thing  as 
magic ;  though  possibly  he  is  the  same  who  wrote 
several  books  against  magic." — Alluding  to  the  Chris- 
tians, Celsus  says,  they  seem  to  prevail  by  the  name 
and  invocation  of  certain  demons. f 

Porphyry,  another  virulent  writer  against  Christian- 
ity, speaks  of  those  as  foolish  who  followed  Jesus  at 
his  call.  He  is  charged  with"  representing  the  apostles 
as  deceivers,  but  appears  to  have  been  ready  to  allow 
that  they  wrought  signs,  but  pleads  that  others  had  done 
so  by  magical  arts.  Indeed,  the  imputation  that  the 
miracles  of  the  Lord  and  his  apostles  were  wrought  by 
magic,  appears  to  have  been  a  common  excuse  for 
rejecting  the  divine  religion  to  which  they  afforded 
such  overwhelming  evidence  ;  and  this  was  a  refuge  to 
which  unbelief  could  flee  to  shroud  the  unhappy  soul 
in  continued  darkness.  Arnobius,  a  later  Christian 
apologist,  refers  to  this  subject,  and  indignantly  ex- 
claims, "  Were  these  works  therefore  the  delusions  of 
demons,  and  the  tricks  of  magic  arts  ?  Are  you  able 
to  point  to  any  one,  to  show  from  all  magicians,  one  who 
ever  in  the  course  of  ages  did  any  thing  approaching 
by  the  thousandth  part  to  the  works  of  Christ  ?" 

Julian  the  apostate  was  born  in  the  year  331,  and 
died  in  363.  He  is  another  of  those  bitter  enemies 
of  the  Gospel,  who  have  yet  allowed  the  reality  of 
the  miracles  which  confirm  its  truth.  He  was  brouofht 
up  as  a  Christian,  and  was  ordained    reader  in  the 

*  Lardaer's  Testiniouies,  article  Celsus.  t  Ibid.  Porphyry. 


28  TESTIMONIES    OF    ENEMIES. 

church  at  Nicodoinia.  He  had  thus  an  opportunity 
of  hcconiincr  thor()U<rhly  acquainted  with  the  Christian 
systt>m.  He  afterwards  embraced  paganism,  and 
manifested  by  persecution,  and  in  other  ways,  his 
utter  hatred  of  Cln-istianity.  His  situation  in  life,  as 
head  of  tlie  Roman  empire,  gave  him  the  most  favour- 
able opportunity,  if  any  imposition  had  been  practised 
in  the  establishment  of  Christianity,  for  detecting  the 
whole,  and  his  hatred  to  the  Christians  and  their  reli- 
gion, would  doubtless  have  led  him  to  do  so ;  yet  he 
did  not.  He  wrote  against  Christianity.  He  patronized 
the  Jews  ;  and  attempted  to  rebuild  their  temple,  pro- 
bably with  the  design  of  proving  false  the  Saviour's 
prophecy,  that  Jerusalem  should  be  trodden  down  of 
the  Gentiles,  &c.  A  heathen  writer  states,  that  this 
attempt  was  defeated  by  balls  of  fire,  which,  bursting 
out  from  the  foundations,  scorched  and  burnt  the 
workmen.  Referring  to  the  Lord  Jesus,  he  writes, 
"  Jesus,  whom  you  celebrate,  was  one  of  Caesar's  sub- 
jects.— After  he  was  born,  what  good  did  he  do  to  his 
relations? — Jesus,  M'ho  rebuJccd  the  winds,  and  umlked 
on  the  sea,  and  cast  out  demons,  and,  as  you  will  have 
it,  made  the  heaven  and  earth,  (though  none  of  his 
disciples  presumed  to  say  this  of  him  except  John 
only,  nor  he  clearly  and  distinctly ;  however,  let  it  be 
allowed  that  he  said  so,)  could  not  order  his  designs  so 
as  to  save  his  friends  and  relations." — "Jesus  having 
persuaded  a  few  among  you,  and  those  the  worst  of 
men,  has  now  been  celebrated  about  three  hundred 
years,  banng  done  nothing  in  his  life-time  worthy  of 
remembrance  ;  unless  any  one  thinks  it  a  mighty  mat- 
ter to  heal  lame  and  blind  people,  and  exorcise  demo- 
niacs in  the  villages  of  Bethsalda  and  Bethany."  Ju- 
lian, in  diflerent  passages,  further  acknowledges  the 
genuhiencss  and  authority  of  many  books  of  the  New 


REMARKS    AND    REFLECTIONS.  29 

Testament ;  tlie  writings  of  Paul,  the  Gospels  of  Mat- 
thew, Mark,  Luke,  and  John,  all  of  which  he  mentions 
by  nnme.  lie  acknowledges  that  these  books  contain 
the  doctrines  of  Ciirist's  apostles.  He  refers  to  the 
first  tliree  Gospels  as  written  before  the  martyrdom 
of  Peter  and  Paul,  and  mentions  John  as  writing  after 
their  death ;  he  acknowledges  the  early  and  rapid 
progress  of  Christianity,  and  as  may  be  observed,  he 
mentions  Jesus  as  having  been  celebrated  for  about 
three  hundred  years.  He  charges  the  Christians  with 
having  departed  from  the  instructions  of  the  apostles. 
"  You  are  so  unhappy  as  not  to  adhere  to  the  things 
delivered  to  you  by  the  apostles. — Jesus  nowhere  di- 
rected you  to  do  such  things,  nor  yet  Paul."  He  ex- 
pressly mentions  the  conversion  of  Cornelius  and 
Sergius  Paulus.  In  an  edict  to  Christians,  he  speaks 
of  them  as  those  who  worshipped  Jesus,  and  esteemed 
him  God  the  Word.*  Referring  to  the  apostle  Paul, 
he  says,  that  he  exceeded  every  way  all  the  cheats 
and  jugglers  which  ever  were.f 

0.  Observe  now,  what  powerful  attestation  these 
testimonies  of  heathen  writers  furnish  to  the  truth  of 
the  Christian  miracles.  Had  the  Jews  been  able  to 
furnish  evidence  that  the  miracles  ascribed  to  Jesus 
and  his  apostles  were  not  wrought,  these  writers 
would  gladly  have  seized  it,  and  handed  it  down  to 
posterity.  They  might  then  have  triumphed  over 
Christians,  as  wicked  impostors,  who  were  attempting 
to  establish  even  religion  by  notorious  falsehoods ; 
but,  instead  of  that,  they  ascribe  these  wonders  to 
magical  arts.  Celsus,  who  probably  had  seen  some 
of  the  disciples  of  the  apostles,  grants  the  miracles. 
Porphyry  does  not  deny  them.     Julian,  with  the  power 

*  Lardiinr's  Jewish  and  Heathen  Test.  nrt.  Julian. 
t  Apud  Cyril  Alex.  b.  iii.  p.  lOU. 


30  REMARKS    AND    REFLECTIONS. 

and  woaltli  of  tlic  Roman  empire  at  his  command,  to 
liunt  out  imposture  if  there  were  any,  while  he  un- 
fairly rei)rescnts  the  character  of  Jesus,  allows  that 
lie  tlid  works  which  cannot  be  done  by  human  power, 
and  which  common  sense  tells  us,  cannot  be  etiected 
by  mag-ical*  arts.  Let  the  enlightened  philosophers, 
as  they  are  pleased  to  term  themselves,  of  modern 
times,  consider  the  testimonies  of  their  friends,  Julian 
and  Celsus.  Let  them  inform  us  how  Jesus,  if  not 
divine,  rebuked  the  winds,  walked  on  the  waves, 
cured  demoniacs,  restored  sight  to  the  blind,  and  vig- 
our to  the  lame,  and  thus  wrought  the  wonders  which 
Julian  acknowledges.  Let  them  consider  that  Celsus 
too,  that  most  bitter  enemy  of  the  Gospel,  who  lived 
just  after  the  time  when  it  was  first  published  to  the 
Avorld,  does  not  disprove  the  miracles  of  its  first 
preachers.  Had  he  been  able  to  prove  these  but  the 
pretences  of  impostors,  would  he  not  have  done  so  ? 
He  says,  indeed,  "  I  could  say  many  things  concerning 
the  affairs  of  Jesus,  and  those  too  diflerent  from  those 
written  by  the  disciples  of  Jesus,  hut  I  purposely  omit 
thcmy  But  would  he  have  declined  bringing  forward 
these  different  statements  if  he  could  have  produced 
any  having  the  least  plausibility  or  appearance  of 
truth  ?  Would  the  true  heir  to  an  estate,  of  which 
an  impostor  sought  to  deprive  him,  neglect  the  doAvn- 
right  proof  that  his  opponent  was  an  impostor,  and 
(piibble  about  trifles?  Would  Celsus,  the  bitter  oppo- 
nent of  Christianity,  and  zealous  defender  of  pagan- 
ism, if  he  could  have  proved  miracles  false,  have  neg- 
lected bringiiig  forwanj  tliat  proof?  One  proof  of 
this  kind  would  have  done  more  to  check  Christianity 
than  the  whole  volume  which  he  wrote  against  it. 
The  miracles  of  the  apostles  doubtless,  under  God, 
contributed  to  make  vast  numbers  their  converts  ;  how 


REMARKS    AND    REFLECTIONS.  31 

could  man  resist  such  evidence  as  that  offered  to  his 
senses,  when  the  bhnd  saw,  and  the  tongue  of  the 
deaf  sang,  when  the  lame  leaped  for  joy,  and  diseases 
and  death  fled  at  a  word  !  Had  Cclsus  proved  tliese 
miracles  imposition,  he  had  done  every  thing  he  could 
desire  ;  but  he  could  not  do  this,  and  therefore  attri- 
buted them  to  magical  powers.  Our  modern  philoso- 
phers disbelieve,  and  deny  the  efficacy  of  magic.  How 
then  can  they  free  themselves  from  the  dilemma  into 
which  their  friend  Celsus  has  brought  them  ?  If  they 
deny  that  Jesus  and  his  apostles  wrought  miracles, 
let  them  remember  that  they  maintain  what  none  but 
infidels,  tliose  enlightened  sons  of  reason,  can  believe  ; 
what  all  besides  must  think  truly  absurd  ;  that  the 
most  inveterate  enemies  of  Christianity,  when  labour- 
ing for  its  subversion,  and  destroying  its  professors, 
by  their  unbroken  silence  gave  their  sanction  to  the 
publication  of  a  long  tissue  of  falsehoods  by  which  it 
was  supported  ;  or  by  ascribing  miracles  to  magical 
arts ;  united  with  the  suffering  friends  of  the  Gospel 
in  its  support ;  that  the  persecutor  and  the  martyr 
joined  in  the  common  deception,  the  first  allowing, 
the  last  affirming  the  miracles  of  Jesus.  They  may 
say  Celsus  was  deceived ;  and  are  they  nearly  seven- 
teen hundred  years  afterwards  to  undeceive  him? 
They  may  assert  the  same  of  Julian ;  but  if  he,  an 
apostate  Christian,  acquainted  with  all  the  secrets  of 
Christianity,  and  raised  to  be  emperor  of  the  world, 
could  detect  no  imposture,  xor  disprove  one  miracle, 
are  they,  fifteen  hundred  years  afterwards,  to  deny 
what  he  acknov.dedged  ?  If  these  talented  enemies 
of  the  Gospel,  with  the  best  means  of  investigation,  so 
near  the  rise  of  the  Christian  religion,  were  compelled 
to  allow  the  truth  of  its  miracles,  can  they,  eighteen 
hundred   years    afterwards,    be    supposed  to  gain  so 


33  TESTIMONY    OF    SUFFERING    FRIENDS. 

niiirli  bolter  a  knoAvlcdo^e  of  what  then  occurro;]  as  to 
jH-ove  tlint  f.ilse  which  their  predecessors  in  unbelief 
were  obljocd  to  grant,  and  to  pass  over  as  impregna- 
bk'  to  all  their  attacks  ?     Tlic  supposition  is  absurd. 

On  reviewino;  this  subject,  it  may  lead  us  to  observe 
how  admirable  is  the  wisdom  of  God  in  thus  ordaining 
that  the  bitterest  enemies  of  Christianity  should  be 
compelled  to  appear  as  witnesses  in  its  behalf;  and 
how  vain  are  the  efforts  of  its  enemies,  when  those 
volumes,  which,  in  one  age  they  wrote  to  prove  it 
false,  in  another,  become  invaluable  evidences  of  its 
truth  !  Thus  are  the  weapons  of  its  enemies  turned 
against  themselves,  and  their  swords  pierce  no  bosoms 
but  their  own.  This  is  evidently  the  case,  while  the 
writings  of  the  early  opposers  of  the  Gospel  unite  with 
those  of  its  friends  to  support  what  they  attempted  to 
destroy.  All  their  attacks  have  tended  to  stamp  their 
cause  and  themselves  with  shame.  For  about  eighteen 
hundred  years  have  the  powers  of  hell  united  to 
destroy  Christianity ;  and  for  about  eighteen  hundred 
years  liave  its  friends  smiled  at  their  feeble  efforts,  or 
rode  securely  tlirough  the  storms  their  malice  has 
raised.  They  have  written  against  it,  and  their  M^ritings 
now  appear  in  its  support ;  they  have  martyred  my- 
riads of  its  friends,  and  rendered  those  martyred 
myriads  witnesses  to  its  truth. 

7.  The  miracles  of  the  Lord  Jesus  and  his  apostles 
are  thus  attested  by  the  silence  of  their  enemies,  who 
had  every  advantage  for  disproving  them,  if  they  had 
not  incontrovertiblybeen  \vrought.  They  receive  ad- 
ditional confirmation  from  the  testimonies  of  those  en- 
emies, who  attribute  them  to  magical  art,  or  the  use  of 
a  stolen  name.  They  are  also  confirmed  by  the  testi- 
mony of  his  sufl^ering  friends.  It  is  true,  the  testimo- 
ny of  professed  friends  is  thought  suspicious,  but  the 


TESTIMONY  OF  SUFFERING  FRIENDS.       33 

testimony  of  tlie  early  friends  of  the  gospel  is  of  a  pe- 
culiar nature.  They  were  its  enemies,  bigoted  Jews 
or  superstitious  heathens,  till  what  they  sav/  and  heard, 
under  the  divine  blessing,  changed  them  into  friends. 
No  testimony  can  be  stronger  than  that  of  a  man  once 
strongly  opposed  to  any  cause,  but  who,  overcome  by 
evidence,  becomes  the  supporter  of  what  he  once  op- 
posed, and  hazards  his  comfort,  his  life,  his  all,  through 
the  force  of  that  conviction.  This  conviction  did  not 
arise  from  any  prejudice  the  primitive  Christians  en- 
tertained in  favour  of  those  who  first  propagated  reli- 
gion, but  from  the  wonderful  facts  which  they  saw 
performed.  The  miracles  which  our  Lord  and  his 
apostles  wrought  gained  them  credit.*  Besides  the 
particulars  recorded  in  the  books  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, we  have  the  express  testimony  of  various  early 
Christians  and  martyrs  to  the  miracles  of  the  Lord  and 
his  apostles.  In  an  epistle  written  in  the  first  century, 
and  ascribed  to  Barnabas,  the  companion  of  Paul,  be- 
sides reference  to  the  sufferings  of  Christ,  his  miracles 
are  generally,  but  plainly,  referred  to  in  the  following 
M'ords  ;  "  Finally,  teaching  the  people  of  Israel,  and 
doing  many  wonders  and  signs  among  them,  he  preach- 
ed to  them,  and  showed  the  exceeding  great  love  which 
he  bore  towards  them."  Clement,  a  hearer  of  St.  Paul, 
says,  "  TJie  apostles  have  preached  to  us  from  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  from  God,  for  having  received  their 
command,  and  being  thoroughly  assured  by  the  resur- 
rection of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  they  went  abroad 
publishing  that  the  kingdom  of  God  was  at  hand.f 
Polycarp,  a  disciple  of  St.  John  and  a  martyr,  recog- 
nises the  resurrection  and  ascension  of  Christ.  Ire- 
na3U3,  another  early  Christian  writer,  says,  that  he  had 

*  John  II.  n.  iii.  2.  iv.  53.  ix.  IG.  xi.  45.  xx.  30,  31,  &c.,  £:c. 
t  E\}.  Barn.  Ep.  Clem.  Roui. 


34  TESTIMOxXY    OF    SUFFERING    FRIENDS. 

heard  from  Polycarp  "  what  he  had  received  from  eye- 
witnesses concerning  the  Lord,  both  concerning  his 
miracles  and  his  doctrine."*  Ignatius,  the  contempo- 
rary of  Polycarp,  who  also  suffered  martyrdom,  is  cir- 
cumstantial on  the  resurrection  of  Jesus.  Quadratus, 
of  the  same  age,  has  left  the  following  noble  testimo- 
ny :  "  The  works  of  our  Saviour  w^ere  always  conspic- 
uous, for  they  w  ere  real ;  both  they  that  were  healed 
and  they  that  were  raised  from  the  dead  ;  who  were 
seen,  not  only  when  they  were  healed  or  raised,  but 
for  a  long  time  afterwards ;  not  only  whilst  he  dwelt 
on  this  earth,  but  also  after  his  departure,  and  for  a  good 
while  after  it,  insomuch  that  some  of  them  have  reached 
to  our  times."!  About  thirty  years  after  Quadratus, 
Justin  Martyr  attested  our  Lord's  works  in  the  follow- 
ing passage :  "  He  healed  those  who  had  been  blind, 
and  deaf,  and  lame,  from  their  birth,  causing  by  his 
word,  one  to  leap,  another  to  hear,  and  a  third  to  see  ; 
and  by  raising  the  dead  and  making  them  to  live,  he 
induced  by  his  works,  the  men  of  that  age  to  know 
him. "J  It  is  true,  some  of  these  writers  were  not  ac- 
tually eye-witnesses  of  the  miracles  they  mention, 
though  others  were ;  but  they  lived  so  early,  that  they 
had  the  best  opportunity  for  investigating  the  truth  oi 
these  miraculous  accounts,  and  so  full  was  their  convic- 
tion, that  several  of  them,  for  the  sake  of  the  Gospel, 
suffered  martyrdom. 

We  may  further  observe,  that  multiudes  of  the  early 
Christians  must  have  been  eye-witnesses  of  the  miracles 
that  confirmed  the  divine  origin  of  the  religion  for 
which  they  died.  Many  of  them  w^ere  Jewish  believers, 
and  lived  where  Jesus  taught ;  others  w^erc  inhabitants 
of  different  places  where  miracles  were  wrought,  which 

*  Iren.  ad.  Flor.  ap.  Euseb.  1.  5.  c.  20.    t  Ap.  Euseb.  H.  E.  1.  4.  c.  3.    ;  Just 
Dial,  cum  Tryph.  p.  288  Ed.  Thirl. 


TESTIMONY    OP    SUFFERING    FRIENDS.  35 

are  mentioned  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  or  referred 
to  in  the  Epistles.  These  must  have  known  whether 
the  accounts  contained  in  the  Gospels  and  the  Acts 
were  true  or  false,  and  whether  miracles  alluded  to  in 
Epistles  written  to  themselves  were  wrought  or  not ; 
but  so  fully  were  they  convinced  of  the  truth  of  these 
facts,  that  they  received  as  divine  the  books  that  record 
them. ;  held  them  in  the  highest  estimation  ;  and  in  many 
instances,  actually  suffered  persecution  and  death,  ra- 
ther than  renounce  the  religion  grounded  on  wdiat  they 
themselves  had  witnessed.  The  accounts  of  miracles 
in  the  gospels,  must,- if  false,  have  been  open  to  imme- 
diate detection,  and  still  less  possibility  was  there,  that 
the  epistles  to  particular  churches  should  contain  un- 
detected falsehoods  on  the  subject  of  miracles.  The 
apostle  Paul  expressly  refers  to  his  miracles,  and  tells 
those  to  whom  hew  rote,  that  he  had  wrought  them  among 
themselves.  Had  he  not  actually  done  so,  this  would 
have  been  such  a  palpable  falsehood,  and  so  easily  de- 
tected, that  no  man  in  his  senses  could  have  ventured 
such  an  assertion.  He  also  refers  to  a  power  possessed 
by  some  among  his  converts  of  working  miracles, 
which,  if  they  had  not  possessed  such  a  power  would 
have  been  as  absurd  as  for  a  modern  advocate  of  the 
Gospel  seriously  to  have  told  the  infidel  Paine  that  to 
himself  had  been  communicated,  the  power  of  raising 
the  dead  in  support  of  Christianity.* 

These  things  furnish  convincing  proof  that  the  early 
Christians  must  have  known,  that  the  miracles  record- 
ed in  the  New  Testament  were  really  wrought,  and  that 
many  of  them  were  eye-witnesses  of  these  wonderful 
facts,  or  had  seen  the  persons  on  whom  they  were  per- 
formed ;  for  miracles  were  their  boast,  and  well  in- 
deed they  might  be  so.     And  the  fact  of  their  having 

*  2  Cor.  xii.  12.  Gal.  iii.  5.    1  Cor.  xii.  9, 10-&C. 


36  TESTIMONY    OF    SUFFERIXG    FRIENDS. 

in  various  places  l)con  witnesses  of  tlicm,  makes  the 
dcatli  of  tlie  early  Cliristian  martyrs  such  a  powerful 
confirmation  of  the  truth  of  Christianity.  As  their  at- 
tention \vas  first  gained,  and  their  reason  convinced  by 
the  miracles  they  saw,  they  really  suffered  as  witness- 
es to  the  truth  of  those  facts,  not  merely  to  the  behef 
in  the  opinion  they  grounded  upon  them.  To  illus- 
trate tliis  further :  suppose  persecution  were  now  ra- 
giug,  and  that  multitudes  of  Christians  were  seized  and 
burnt  for  their  religion,  in  Smithfield,  the  place  where 
popish  cruelty  once  shed  the  blood  of  so  many  martyrs. 
The  death  of  these  persons  would  not  prove  the  truth 
of  Christianity,  but  it  would  decisively  prove,  that  they 
believed  it  true.  They  would  die  witnesses  to  that  be- 
lief. But  if  a  multitude  of  persons  who  had  become 
Christians,  after  seeing  the  diseased  restored  to  health, 
and  the  dead  to  life,  were  martyred  for  religion,  they 
would  then  die  witnesses  to  these  facts,  as  well  as  mar- 
tyrs to  the  belief  which  sprung  from  them.  And  if  the 
facts  were  of  a  nature  which  prevented  the  possibility 
of  deception,  the  death  of  a  number  of  martyrs,  for  a 
belief  grounded  on  them,  would  incontestably  prove 
their  truth.  Now,  in  consequence  of  a  belief  ground- 
ed on  the  miracles  of  the  Lord  and  his  apostles,  multi- 
tudes endured  martyrdom,  and  these  not  people  of 
only  one  village,  or  one  town,  or  one  city,  or  one  na- 
tion, but  multitudes  in  countries  far  remote  from  each 
other ;  and  these  not  merely  the  hardy  and  the  brave, 
but  the  timid  and  the  weak.  Even  women,  forgetting 
their  natural  timidity,  were  bold  in  suffering  for  the 
name  of  Jesus.  Christianity  produced  sufferers  of  a 
new  description.  Before  its  introduction,  the  courage- 
ous warrior  or  the  liardened  villain  were  the  persons 
that  looked  on  death  with  careless  unconcern  ;  but  un- 
der the  influence  of  the  Gospel,  the  fearful  and  the  ten- 


TESTIMONY    OF    SUFFERING    FRIENDS.  37 

der  assumed  a  firmness  exceeding  that  of  the  hardened 
villain,  or  the  courageous  warrior.  With  the  gentle 
meekness  of  the  lamb,  was  united  the  undaunted  cour- 
age of  the  lion.  The  young  and  immature,  as  well  as 
the  more  aged  and  robust,  became  sufferers  for  the 
sake  of  the  Gospel.  Nor  was  belief  in  the  Gospel  con- 
fined to  the  mean  and  illiterate,  but  miracles,  with 
overAvhelming  evidence,  convinced  heathen  philoso- 
phers and  Jewish  priests,  some  of  whom  were  converts 
and  martyrs.  In  the  persecution  at  Rome  under  Nero, 
according  to  the  testimony  of  Tacitus,  a  heathen  histo- 
rian, many  Christians  suffered  martyrdom  in  various 
tormenting  and  dreadful  forms.  At  this  period  the 
apostles  Peter  and  Paul  suffered  death.  Some  of  their 
fellow-sufferers  must  have  been  witnesses  of  the  mira- 
cles which  wrought  so  powerfully  on  many  minds ; 
and  the  martyrs,  in  this  early  persecution,  suffered  not 
for  a  belief  handed  down  to  them  by  others,  but  for 
what  they  had  learned  from  the  very  first  preachers  of 
the  Gospel ;  and  which  had  been  confirmed  by  the  mir- 
acles those  preachers  wrought.  The  apostle  John 
lived  till  Trajan's  reign,  and  among  the  eminent  per- 
sons, who  had  been  conversant  with  the  apostles,  and 
who  suffered  subsequent  to  the  first  persecution,  may 
be  mentioned  Ignatius,  pastor  of  the  Church  at  Antioch, 
who,  in  Trajan's  reign,  was  exposed  to  wild  beasts  at 
Rome  ;  and  Polycarp,  who  had  been  a  disciple  of  John, 
and  who  was  burnt  in  the  reign  of  Marcus  Antoninus. 
As  we  know  that  these  survived,  and  suffered  long  after 
the  first  persecution  of  the  Christians,  it  is  probable 
others  might ;  that,  for  instance,  among  the  Bithynian 
martyrs,  whom  the  philosophic  Pliny  murdered,  might 
be  many  who  had  witnessed  the  miracles  of  the  imme- 
diate disciples  of  the  Lord  ;  but  however  that  be,  it 
must  be  evident,  to  any  candid  person,  that  they  who 
4 


38       TESTIMONY-  OF  SUFFERING  FRIENDS. 

suficrcd  death  duiinir  the  apostolic  age,  and  even  in 
the  same  perseciilion  with  some  of  the  apostles,  must 
have  heen  intimately  acquainted  with  their  mighty 
works  ;  and  hy  preferring  death  to  a  renunciation  of 
the  reliirion  these  confirmed,  they  became  witnesses 
of  their  truth.  Let  it  be  remembered  also,  that  ac- 
cording to  the  testimony  of  heathen  historians,  not  one 
or  two  only  at  that  time  braved  death,  but  multitudes  : 
thousands  sacrificed  all  that  was  dear  to  them,  and  suf- 
fered such  torments,  that  death,  by  the  stroke  of  an  axe, 
Avould  have  been  a  favour.  Let  it  also  be  considered, 
that  during  that  period,  when  there  was  the  best  pos- 
sible o})portunity  for  investigating  the  truth  of  the 
miracles  ascribed  to  the  Lord  and  his  apostles,  multi- 
tudes Avere  so  convinced  of  their  truth,  that  they  em- 
braced the  religion  for  which  they  suffered,  with  no 
prospect  but  that  of  suffering.  Little  hope  had  they 
for  this  w^orld  ;  their  hopes  must  have  been  fixed  upon 
a  better.  The  worldly  encouragement  offered  them 
for  embracing  the  Gospel,  w^as  pains  and  penalties, 
shame  and  exile,  imprisonment  and  death.  Yet  with 
this  dark  scene  before  them,  did  some,  who  perhaps 
till  then  had  enjoyed  the  sunshine  of  continued  pros- 
perity, bid  farewell  to  all  the  pleasures  of  life,  to  meet 
its  roughest  storms,  face  its  dangers,  and  sink  into  the 
grave  beneath  them  :  such  as  Dionysius  the  Areopa- 
gite ;  Joseph  of  Arimathea,  a  member  of  the  Jewish 
sanhedrim ;  and  Flavins  Clemens,  a  Roman  senator 
and  consul ;  all  of  whom,  it  is  said,  gained  the  crown 
of  martyrdom — that  crown,  which,  excepting  the  crown 
of  glory,  is  the  oidy  one  w^orth  gaining.  Yet  while 
some  were  suffering,  others  were  rushing  forw^ard  to 
fill  their  places  ;  and  as  fast  as  some  yielded  to  the  rage 
of  persecutors  others  appeared  to  brave  their  fury. 
The  progress  of  Christianity  at  that  time,  may  remind 


TESTIMONY    OF    SUFFERING    FRIENDS.  39 

US  of  the  beast  seen  in  vision  by  Daniel,  in  which  as 
soon  as  one  horn  was  broken,  four  more  arose. 

To  these  remarks  it  may  be  added,  thatliad  the  mir 
acles  of  Christianity  been  fictitious,  some  early  apos- 
tate, some  secret  or  avowed  enemy  would  have  dis- 
covered the  imposition.  There  is  abundant  evidence 
that  in  the  first  age  many  m  lio  for  a  while  professed 
religion  apostatized.  Some  sunk  back  into  sin,  others 
into  sin  and  heathenism.  Is  it  possible  to  believe,  it 
there  had  been  any  imposture  practised  in  the  estab- 
lishment of  Christianity,  that  all  these  would  have 
maintained  unbroken  silence,  and  no  one  have  lifted 
his  voice  to  denounce  the  cheat?  Even  Judas,  who 
saw  the  Lord  in  his  most  private  hours,  who  witnessed 
all  that  passed  behind  the  scene,  as  well  as  what  took 
place  before  the  public  eye,  was  so  far  from  detecting 
any  imposture,  that  after  his  Lord  was  condemned, 
through  grief  and  remorse  he  hung  himself:  "The 
repentance  of  this  covetous  disciple,  dissipates  every 
idea  of  a  conspiracy.  The  field  purchased  with  the 
money,  for  the  burial  of  strangers,  became  a  monument 
of  instruction  for  all  the  world."*  A  conspiracy  in 
which  a  few  hundred  conspirators  unite,  has  seldom, 
if  ever,  long  remained  undiscovered.  Some  one  has 
betrayed  the  whole.  But  if  the  miracles  of  the  Gos- 
pel were  a  forgery,  here  was  a  conspiracy  to  establish 
Christianity  by  imposture,  carried  on  through  many 
years,  in  almost  every  part  of  the  then  known  world, 
in  the  midst  of  opposition  and  of  suffering,  for  which 
thousands  laid  down  their  lives,  which  thousands  more 
forsook,  which  multitudes  wished  to  prove  a  clieat,  and 
yet  no  timorous  friend,  no  apostate  enemy  unveiled  the 
delusion  and  exposed  the  imposture.  They  who  can 
be  credulous  enough  to  believe  this  have  no  cause  to 

*  Pluche. 


40  TESTIMONY    OF    SUFFERING    FRIENDS. 

insult  Christians  witli  charges  of  credulity.  The  sim- 
ple i)c;!sa)it  who  is  firmly  persuaded  that  witches  ride 
on  broom-handles  through  the  air  is  not  more  credu- 
lous than  these  vaunting  sons  of  reason  ! 

Thus  then  we  see  that  the  early  enemies  of  Christian- 
ity, by  not  disproving  the  miracles  ascribed  to  Jesus 
and  his  apostles,  in  fact,  allowed  their  truth  ;  and  that 
some  of  them  actually  confess  this,  by  ascribing  them 
to  magic,  or  the  use  of  a  stolen  name.  We  further  see, 
that  if  the  miracles  related  in  the  New  Testament,  had 
been  the  tales  of  impostors,  the  early  Christians  must 
Jiave  detected  the  falsehood,  but,  instead  of  this,  they 
made  miracles  their  boast ;  and  numbers  who  must 
have  seen  them  performed,  suffered  death  for  their  be- 
lief, which  originated  from  them ;  while  none  that  apos- 
tatized from  Christianity  ever  betrayed  any  imposture 
as  connected  with  the  means  used  for  its  establishment. 
Thus  enemies  and  friends  prove  the  truth  of  these 
wonderful  facts,  and  these  facts  prove  the  truth  of 
Christianity. 

While  taking  this  view  of  the  subject,  we  may  ob- 
serve an  important  distinction  between  the  early  Chris- 
tian martyrs,  and  those  few  enthusiasts,  who  may  have 
had  resolution  enough  to  meet  death,  rather  than  re- 
nounce some  wild  opinions.  The  last  suffered  for 
fancies,  that  perhaps  sprung  from  heated  imagination ; 
the  former  died  witnesses  to  facts  which  they  had  seen 
performed.  If  some  of  the  philosophists  of  the  day 
should  tell  us  that  it  is  not  Christianity  only  which  has 
had  its  martyrs  ;  we  may  reply,  it  is  Christianity  only 
that  has  had  its  myriads  of  willing  martyrs  ;  but  if 
.some  wild  sects  should  be  pointed  out  that  may  boast 
a  few,  these  were  martyrs  to  fancies,  not  to  facts. 

8.  Another  attestation  to  the  divine  origin  of  Chris- 
tianity, and  to  the  miracles  which  proved  its  divinity, 


RAPID    EXTENSION    OF    CHRISTIANITY.  41 

springs  from  its  rapid  difTusioii  throufrh  the  world. 
Both  Christian  and  heathen  writers  unite  in  offering 
testimony  to  the  rapid  progress  of  the  Gospel.  Tacitus 
bears  witness  to  this  fact,  and  to  the  sufferings  of  the 
disciples  of  the  Saviour.  He  says,  that  Nero,  to  free 
himself  from  the  charge  of  having  set  fire  to  Rome, 
imputed  that  crime  to  the  Christians.  He  adds,  "  They 
had  their  denomination  from  Christus,  who  in  the 
reign  of  Tiberius,  was  put  to  death  as  a  criminal  by 
the  procurator  Pontius  Pilate.  This  pernicious  super- 
stition, checked  for  the  present,  again  broke  out,  and 
spread  not  only  over  Judea,  the  source  of  the  evil,  but 
through  the  city  also,  (Rome,)  whither  from  all  quar- 
ters all  things  vile  and  shameful  flow  and  are  practised. 
At  first  they  were  apprehended  who  confessed  them- 
selves of  that  sect.  Afterwards  a  great  multitude  dis- 
covered by  them,  all  of  whom  were  condemned,  not 
so  much  for  the  crime  of  burning  the  city  as  for  their 
enmity  to  mankind.  Their  executions  were  so  con- 
trived as  to  expose  them  to  derision  and  contempt. 
Some  were  covered  over  with  the  skins  of  wild  beasts 
and  torn  to  pieces  by  dogs ;  some  were  crucified  ; 
others,  with  combustible  materials,  were  set  up  as 
lights  in  the  niglit  time,  and  thus  burned.  Nero  made 
use  of  his  own  gardens  as  a  theatre  on  this  occasion, 
and  also  exhibited  the  diversions  of  the  circus,  some- 
times standing  in  the  crowd  as  a  spectator,  in  the  habit 
of  a  charioteer,  at  other  times  driving  a  chariot  himself, 
till  at  length  these  men,  though  really  criminal,  and  de- 
serving exemplary  punishment,  began  to  be  commiser- 
ated as  people  who  were  destroyed,  not  out  of  a  regard 
to  the  public  welfare,  but  only  to  gratify  the  cruelty  of 
one  man."* 

This  was  but  about  thirty-four  years  after  the  ascen- 

*  Tacit.  Ann.  1. 15.  c.  44. 

4* 


42  RAPID    EXTENSION    OF    CHRISTIANITY. 

sioii  of  the  Lord,  yet  so  rapid  had  hccn  the  progress  of 
the  Gos])i;l,  that  it  had  reached  Rome,  and  there  made 
a  great  multitude  of  converts,  who  preferred  their  re- 
ligion to  their  lives.  By  what  diabolical  art  it  was  ef- 
fected, that  besides  the  other  ways  of  torturing,  some 
of  them  served  as  lights  in  the  streets  by  night,  he  does 
not  inform  us.  Some  suppose  that  they  were  covered 
with  a  pitched  garment  called  the  tunica  molesta,  which, 
being  set  on  lire,  would  continue  burning.  The  tunica 
molesta  was  one  of  the  most  dreadful  kinds  of  punish- 
ment;  it  was  "made  like  a  sack  of  paper  or  coarse 
linen  cloth,  and  having  been  besmeared  within  and 
without  with  pitch,  wax,  rosin,  sulphur,  and  such  like 
combustible  materials,  or  dipt  all  over  in  them,  was  put 
on  the  person  for  whom  it  was  appointed,  and  that  he 
might  be  kept  upright,  the  more  to  resemble  a  flaming 
torch,  his  chin  was  fastened  to  a  stake  fixed  in  the 
ground." 

The  learned  Jacob  Bryant  says :  "  I  imagine  from 
a  passage  in  Juvenal,  that  they  had  deep  holes  made  in 
different  parts  of  the  body,  in  which  wax  tapers  were 
inserted.  In  this  manner  they  were  exposed  by  day 
and  by  night  in  the  streets  ;  and  when  the  tapers  burned 
down  to  the  quick,  the  pain  in  consequence  of  it  must 
have  been  very  great,  and  the  spectacle  which  the  poor 
sufferers  exhibited  must  have  been  very  horrid."  Thus, 
in  various  w^ays,  did  these  innocent  victims  sufler,  as 
the  historian  observes,  by  the  most  studied  torments. 
What  but  a  divine  religion  could  have  proceeded  in  the 
midst  of  such  opposition !  What  but  a  divine  hand 
support  multitudes  of  sufferers  under  such  torments ! 
What  but  infallible  certainty  that  they  had  not  followed 
cunningly-devised  fables,  could  lead  them  to  encounter 
such  varied  torments,  when  by  renouncing  Christianity, 
they  might  have  easily  escaped  them  all ! 


RAPID    EXTENSION    OF    CHRISTIANITY.  43 

Pliny  is  anoilicr  heathen  writer  who  bears  testimony 
to  the  rapid  diffusion  of  Christianity.  He  was  the  friend 
of  the  emperor  Trajan,  and  was  appointed  president  of 
Bithynia,  about  a.  d.  10(5,  wlien  some  A\iio  had  seen  the 
miracles  of  the  apostles  must  have  been  still  living. 
He  found  Bithynia,  though  1200  miles  from  Jerusalem, 
overrun  with  Christianity,  and  met  with  so  many  ready 
to  suffer  martyrdom,  that  at  length,  tired  of  executions, 
he  wrote  to  Trajan  for  his  directions.  His  whole  letter 
deserves  insertion : 

"  It  is  my  constant  custom,  sir,  to  refer  myself  to 
ydu  in  all  matters  concerning  which  I  have  any  doubt. 
For  who  can  better  direct  me  where  I  hesitate,  or  in- 
struct me  where  I  am  ignorant?  I  have  never  been 
present  at  any  trials  of  Christians,  so  that  I  know  not 
well  what  is  the  subject  matter  of  punishment  or  of 
inquiry,  or  what  strictness  ought  to  be  used  in  either. 
Nor  have  I  been  a  little  perplexed  to  determine  w^hether 
any  difference  ought  to  be  made  upon  account  of  ages, 
or  whether  the  tender  and  the  robust  ought  to  be  treated 
all  alike  ;  whether  repentance  should  entitle  to  pardon, 
or  whether  it  shall  be  of  no  advantage  to  him  who  has 
once  been  a  Christian  to  have  ceased  being  such  ;  whe- 
ther the  name  itself,  although  no  crimes  be  detected, 
or  whether  only  crimes  belonging  to  the  name  ought 
to  be  punished.  Concerning  all  these  things  I  am  in 
doubt. 

"  In  the  mean  time  I  have  taken  this  course  with  all 
who  have  been  brought  before  me,  and  have  been 
accused  as  Christians.  I  have  put  the  question  to  them, 
whether  they  were  Christians  ?  Upon  their  confessing 
to  me  that  they  were,  I  repeated  the  question  a  second 
and  a  third  time,  threatening  also  to  punish  them  with 
death.  Such  as  still  persisted,  I  ordered  to  be  led  away ; 
for  it  was  no  doubt  with  me,  whatever  it  was  they 


44  RAPID    EXTEx\SION    OF    CHRISTIANITY 

should  have  confessed,  that  contumacy  and  inflexible 
obsliiiacy  ouoht  to  be  punished.  There  were  others 
of  the  same  madness,  whom,  because  they  are  Roman 
citizens,  I  have  noted  down  to  be  sent  to  the  city. 

"  In  a  short  time  the  crime  spreading  itself  even 
while  under  persecution,  as  is  usual  in  such  cases, 
divers  sort  of  people  came  in  my  way.  An  information 
was  presented  to  me  without  mentioning  the  author, 
containing  the  names  of  many  persons  who,  upon  ex- 
amination, denied  that  they  were  Christians,  or  had 
ever  been  so,  who  repeated  after  me  an  invocation  of 
the  gods,  and  with  wine  and  frankincense  sacrificed  to 
your  image,  which,  for  that  purpose,  I  had  caused  to 
be  brought  and  set  before  them,  together  with  the  sta- 
tues of  the  deities.  Moreover,  they  reviled  the  name 
of  Christ ;  none  of  which  things,  as  is  said,  they  who 
are  really  Christians,  can,  by  any  means,  be  compelled 
to  do  ;  these,  therefore,  I  thought  proper  to  discharge. 

"  Others  Avere  named  by  an  informer,  who  at  first 
confessed  themselves  Christians,  and  afterwards  denied 
it.  The  rest  said  they  had  been  Christians  but  had 
left  them,  some  three  years  ago,  some  longer,  and  one 
or  more  above  twenty  years.  They  all  worshipped 
•your  image,  and  the  statues  of  the  gods  ;  they  also  re- 
viled Christ.  They  affirmed  that  the  whole  of  their 
fault  or  error  lay  in  this,  that  they  were  accustomed 
to  meet  together  on  a  stated  day  before  it  ^vas  light, 
and  sang  among  themselves,  alternately,  a  hymn  to 
Christ  as  a  God,  (or  addressed  themselves  in  a  form  of 
prayer  to  Christ  as  to  some  God,)*  and  bound  them- 
selves by  an  oath  (sacramento)  not  to  the  commission 
of  any  wickedness,  but  not  to  be  guilty  of  theft,  or 
robbery,  or  adultery ;  never  to  folsify  their  word,  nor 
to  deny  a  pledge  committed  to  them,  when  called  upon 

*  Mclmoth. 


RAPID    EXTENSION    OF    CHRISTIANITY.  45 

to  return  it.  When  these  things  were  performed,  it 
was  their  custom  to  separate,  and  then  to  come  toge- 
ther again  to  a  meal  promiscuous  and  harmless,  but 
which  had  been  forborne  since  the  publication  of  my 
edict,  by  which,  according  to  your  commands,  I  pro- 
hibited assemblies. 

"  Through  this  I  judged  it  more  necessary  to  ex- 
amine, and  that  by  torture,  two  maid  servants,  who 
were  called  ministers ;  but  I  have  discovered  nothing 
besides  a  bad  and  excessive  superstition. 

"  Suspending,  therefore,  proceeding,  I  have  recourse 
to  you  for  advice.  For  it  has  appeared  to  me  a  matter 
worthy  of  consideration,  especially  on  account  of  the 
great  number  of  persons  who  are  in  danger  of  suffer- 
ing. For  many  of  all  ages  and  of  both  sexes  also  are 
brought  into  danger,  and  will  be  brought.  Nor  has  the 
contagion  of  this  superstition  spread  tlirough  cities  only, 
but  through  the  towns  (villages)  and  open  country. — 
It  seems  that  it  may  be  restrained  and  corrected.  It 
is  certain  that  the  almost  desolated  temples  begin  to 
be  frequented,  and  the  sacred  solemnities,  after  a  long 
intermission,  are  revived ;  and  that  the  victims  are 
everywhere  bought,  for  which,  before,  a  buyer  was 
very  rarely  found  ;  whence  it  is  easy  to  imagine  what 
a  multitude  of  men  might  be  reclaimed  if  place  were 
granted  for  repentance." 

Trajan,  in  reply,  approved  Pliny's  proceedings,  but 
ordered  Christians  not  to  be  sought  out,  but  when 
brought  and  convicted,  to  be  punished  ;  but  allowed 
those  to  be  forgiven  who  would  repent  and  supplicate 
their  gods.* 

Tcitulliaii  justly  ridicules  this  unrighteous  edict,  and  exposes  the  manner 
i.)  which  Cliristians  wert;  persocutod  mf-rcly  for  a  name,  while  common  report 
wa.<  chur{j:ing  them  with  killing-  and  cr.linir  infants,  and  with  t!ie  basest  crimes. 
"Oh  what  inunortal  irlory  would  a  proconsul  g^ain  ainoiifr  the  people  could  he 
p;dl  out  a  Christian  by  the  ears  tliat  had  eat  up  a  !iuiKli-ud  ciuldren  !  But  we 
despair  of  any  sucii  glorious  discovery  when  we  rcllecl  on  tlie  edict  against 


46 


RAPID    EXTENSION    OF    CHRISTIANITY. 


This  celebrated  letter  bears  testimony  to  A^arious  im- 
portant facts.  Here  we  see  the  patience  of  the  saints  : 
when  in  the  power  of  their  philosophic  murderer,  they 
preferred  suflcring  death  to  renouncing  their  Redeemer. 
Hence  we  learn  how  great,  how  rapid  had  been  the 
success  of  the  Gospel :  a  heathen  philosopher  and  priest 
declares,  that  it  had  desolated  the  temples  of  Bithynia  ; 
and  had  literally,  for  a  time,  annihilated  the  sacred  rites 
of  heathenism.  Nor  is  that  part  of  the  letter  less  re- 
markable in  which  he  notices  what  he  had  learned  re- 
specting Christianity  from  those  who  had  forsaken  it ; 
some  of  them  even  twenty  years.  No  system  of  impos- 
ture was  detected.  He  makes  no  statement  of  this  kind, 
thouo;h  he  himself  treated  it  as  a  base  and  extravairant 
superstition. 

After  this  reference  to  Pliny's  testimony,  it  is  not 
uninstructive  to  remark  the  wide  contrast  that  existed 
between  the  persecuting  philosopher  and  the  innocent 
victims  of  his  cruelty.  He  was,  as  it  appears  from  his 
own  writings,  devoted  to  idols,  and  acknowledged  as 
objects  of  worship  the  impure  rabble  of  heathen  de- 
ities ;  they  adored  the  Creator  of  heaven  and  earth. 
He  was  an  augur,  who  sought  instructions  from  dreams, 
oracles,  prodigies,  and  various  superstitious  rites ;  they 
were  guided  by  the  infallible  counsels  of  the  Book  of 
God.     They  followed  peace,  benevolence,  and  love ; 

eearching  after  us. — Oh,  perplexity  between  reasons  of  state  and  justice  I  Ha 
declares  us  to  be  innocent  by  forbidding  us  to  be  searched  after,  and,  at  the 
same  time,  commands  us  to  be  punished  as  criminals.  What  a  mass  of  kind- 
ness and  cruelty,  connivance  and  punishment,  is  here  confounded  in  one  act ' 
Unhappy  edict!  thus  to  circumvent  and  hamper  yourself  in  your  own  ambig- 
uous answer  !  If  you  condemn  us,  why  do  you  give  orders  against  searching 
after  us  ?  and  if  j'ou  think  it  not  well  to  search  after  us.  why  do  you  not  ac- 
quit us?  Soldiers  are  set  to  patrol  in  every  province  for  the  apprehending 
of  robbers — a  Christian  only  is  a  criminal  of  t'.iat  strange  kind  that  no  inquiry 
must  be  made  to  find  him,  and  yet  when  founrl  may  be  brought  to  the  tribunal. 
You  condemn  him  therefore  when  brought,  whom  the  laws  forbid  to  be  searcli- 
ed  after ;  not  that  in  y(>ur  hearts  j'ou  can  think  him  guilty,  but  only  to  get  into 
the  good  graces  of  the  people,  whose  zeal  has  transported  them  to  search  him 
out,  against  the  intention  of  the  edict." 


RAPID    EXTENSION    OF    CHRISTIANITY' 


47 


he  approved  of  the  cruel  and  bloody  combats  of  gladi- 
ators, ill  which,  for  the  amusement  of  spectators,  crowds 
of  men  fought  to  death  with  their  fellow  men,  or  with 
savage  beasts  of  prey.  Thus  he  writes  to  a  friend : 
"  You  were  extremely  in  the  right  to  promise  a  com- 
bat of  gladiators  to  our  good  friends  the  citizens  of 
Verona  ;  not  only  as  they  have  long  distinguished  you 
with  their  peculiar  esteem  and  veneration,  but  as  it  was 
there  also  you  received  the  amiable  object  of  your  af- 
fection— ^j'our  late  excellent  wife.  To  her  memory  you 
owed  some  monument  or  public  show,  and  this  espe- 
cially as  most  suited  to  the  occasion.  I  am  sorry  that 
the  African  panthers,  which  you  had  largely  provided 
for  that  purpose,  did  not  arrive  in  time."  Contrast 
with  Pliny's  pleasure  in  scenes  like  these,  where  men 
murdered  each  other,  and  w^here  savage  beasts  drank 
the  blood  and  tore  the  bodies  of  hapless  men,  and  with 
his  sorrow  that  some  of  the  most  savage  of  those  beasts 
had  not  arrived  in  time  to  celebrate  in  the  groans,  and 
sighs,  and  blood,  and  dying  agonies  of  their  miserable 
victims,  the  death  of  an  amiable  woman ;  contrast  with 
all  this  the  Christians,  according  to  his  own  account, 
meeting  to  sing  a  hymn  to  Christ ;  and  to  bind  them- 
selves to  commit  no  crime ;  and  which  must  you  admire, 
Pliny,  the  philosophic  persecutor,  whom  the  lovers  of 
classic  heathenism  extol  and  infidels  admire,  or  those 
M'hom  he  persecuted,  but  whose  names  were  written 
in  the  Lamb's  book  of  life  ?  Yet  Pliny  was  one  of  the 
most  amiable  and  best  of  ancient  heathens ;  what,  then, 
were  the  worst !  and  what  is  the  value  of  that  religion 
which  proclaims  glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and  on 
earth  peace,  good  will  towards  men  !  Like  Pliny, 
Trajan  was  an  admirer  of  gladiatorial  shows,  which  on 
one  occasion  in  his  reign  were  continued  for  123  days; 
in  them  11,000  beasts  were  killed,  and  10,000  men  en- 


48  RAPID    EXTExXSION    OF    CHRISTIANITY. 

graced  i)i  combats :  and,  miicli  as  Trajan  has  been  ex- 
tolled in  history,  according  to  Dion  Cassius,  he  was 
polluted  wifli  vice  too  infamous  to  be  mentioned. 

']'he  writiniis  of  Tacitus  and  Pliny  tlius  furnish  im- 
portant evidence  to  various  interesting  facts  connected 
with  the  early  diflusion  of  Christianity.     To  their  tes- 
timonies may  be  added  that  of  Lucian,  not  indeed  as 
referring  to  the  extension  of  Christianity,  but  to  the 
spirit  and  patience  of  its  early  professors,  and  as  bear- 
ing testimony  to  various  important  facts ;  especially  that 
in  Palestine,  where  Christianity  arose,  it  stiil  prevailed ; 
that  the  Lord  Jesus,  who  was  crucified,  was  the  object 
of  Christian  worship;  and  that  in  imitation  of  him,  the 
Christians  were  intent  on  acts  of  benevolence  and  lore. 
In  describing  the  conduct  of  a  philosopher  named  Per- 
egrinus,  often  called  Proteus,  M^ho,  when  an  old  man, 
about  the  year  165  or  169,  thre^r  himself  into  the  flames, 
at  the  Olympic  games,  in  the  sight  of  multitudes,  and 
who  appears  in  his  early  life  to  have  professed  Chris- 
tianity, and  to  have  been  a  base  hypocrite,  Lucian 
writes  :  "  He  learned  the  wonderful  doctrines  of  the 
Christians  by  conversing  with  their  priests  and  scribes 
near  Palestine  ;  and  in  a  short  time  he  showed  they 
were  but  children  to  him. — They  still  worship  that 
great  man  who  was  crucified  in  Palestine,  because  he 
introduced  into  the  world  this  new  religion.     For  this 
reason,  Proteus  was  taken  up  and  put  into  prison, 
which  very  thing  was  of  no  small  service  to  him  after- 
wards for   giving  reputation  to  his  impostures,  and 
gratifying  his    vanity.      The    Christians    were    much 
grieved  for  his  imprisonment,  and  tried  all  ways  to  pro- 
cure his  liberty.     Not  being  able  to  eflfect  that,  they  did 
him  all  sorts  of  kind  offices,  and  that  not  in  a  careless 
manner,  but  with  the  greatest  assiduity :  for  even  be- 
times m  the  morning,  there  would  be  at  the  prison  old 


RAPID    EXTEXSION    OF    CIIRISTIAMTY.  49 

women,  some,  widows,  and  also  little  orphan  cliildren; 
and  some  of  the  chief  of  their  men,  by  corrii})ting  the 
keepers,  Avoiild  get  into  prison^  and  stay  the  whole  night 
with  him :  there  they  had  a  good  snj)per  together  and 
their  sacred  discourses. — Even  from  the  cities  of  Asia 
some  Christians  came  to  him,  by  an  order  of  the  body, 
to  relieve,  encourage,  and  comfort  him.  For  it  is  in- 
credible what  expedition  they  use  when  any  of  their 
friends  are  known  to  be  in  trouble.  In  a  word,  they 
spare  nothing  upon  such  an  occasion ;  for  these  miser- 
able men  have  no  doubt  they  shall  be  immortal,  and 
live  forever;  therefore  they  despise  death,  and  many 
of  them  surrender  themselves  to  sufferings.  Moreover 
their  iirst  Lawgiver  has  taught  them,  that  they  are  all 
brethren,  when  once  they  have  turned  and  renounced 
the  gods  of  the  Greeks,  and  worship  this  Master  of 
theirs  who  was  crucified,  and  engaged  to  live  according 
to  his  laws.  They  have  also  a  sovereign  contempt  for 
all  the  things  of  this  Avorld,  and  look  upon  them  as 
common :  and  trust  one  another  with  them  without  any 
particular  security."*  Precious  testimony  to  the  influ- 
ence of  the  Gospel !  more  precious  as  delivered  not  by 
a  glowing  friend,  but  a  scoiling  enemy ! 

To  those  statements  respecting  the  diffusion  and  pow- 
erful effects  of  Christianity,  which  are  furnished  by 
heathen  writers,  may  be  added  the  testimony  of  some 
of  its  suffering  friends.  Justin  Martyr,  who  is  sup- 
posed to  hav^e  been  born  within  seventy  years  after 
the  Lord's  ascension,  who  was  a  heathen  philosopher, 
but  who  embraced  Christianity,  and  who  in  the  year 
140  (or  106  years  after  the  ascension)  presented  an 
apology  for  the  Christians  to  the  Roman  emperor  An- 
tonine,  declares  it  as  a  notorious  fact,  that  there  was 
no  nation  of  men,  whether  Greeks  or  barbarians,  not 

*  Lucian  de  mort.  Per. 


50  RAPID    EXTEXSION    OP    CHT^ISTIAMTY. 

rxcc'ptinjLT  even  tliose  wild  stragglers,  the  Amaxobii  and 
Nomndes,  (nations  who  led  a  wandering  life,  and  lived 
in  tents,)  wlio  had  no  fixe4  habitation,  who  had  not 
learned  to  invoke  the  one  Father  and  Former  of  all 
ihintrs,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  who  was  crucified. 

This  declaration  is  the  more  remarkable,  as  it  is  made 
in  his  dialogue  with  Trypho,  an  inveterate  enemy. 
Justin  suffered  martyrdom  about  the  year  165 ;  and 
about  thirty  years  after  his  death,  Clement  of  Alexan- 
dria, comparing  the  success  of  Christianity  and  of 
various  philosophical  systems,  remarks,  "  The  philos- 
ophers were  confined  to  Greece  and  to  their  particular 
retainers,  but  the  doctrine  cf  the  Master  of  Christianity 
did  not  remain  in  Judea,  as  philosophy  did  in  Greece, 
but  it  spread  tliroughout  the  whole  ivorld,  in  every  na- 
tion, and  village,  and  city,  both  of  Greeks  and  barba- 
rians, converting  both  whole  houses  and  separate  indi- 
viduals, having  already  brought  over  to  the  truth  not  a 
few  of  the  philosophers  themselves.  If  the  Greek 
philosophy  be  prohibited,  it  immediately  vanishes ; 
whereas,  from  the  first  preaching  of  our  doctrine,  kings 
and  tyrants,  governors  and  presidents,  with  their  whole 
train,  and  with  the  populace  on  their  side,  have  en- 
deavoured with  their  whole  might  to  exterminate  it,  yet 
it  flourishes  more  and  more."* 

About  the  same  time  as  Clement  wrote,  or,  at  the  ut- 
most, but  a  few  years  afterwards,  Tertullian  ventured 
to  appeal  to  the  Roman  governors,  in  language  which 
could  only  have  exposed  him  and  the  cause  of  Chris- 
tianity to  ridicule,  if  the  number  of  Christians  had  not 
been  immense:  "We  are  but  of  yesterday,  and  we 
have  filled  all  that  is  yours.  Cities,  islands,  forts,  towns, 
assemblies,  the  camps  themselves,  v/ards,  companies, 

'■'  Clement's  Stroraata,  or  Various  Discourses,  book  6. 


RAPID    EXTENSION    OF    CHRISTIANITY.  51 

the  pahicc,  the  senate,  the  forum.  We  leave  you  only 
your  temples." 

Referring  to  the  love  of  Christians  to  their  enemies, 
the  same  writer  remarks,  "  What  war  can  we  now  be 
unprepared  for  ?  and  supposing  us  unequal  in  strength, 
yet  considering  our  usage,  what  should  we  not  attempt 
readily  ?  We  whom  you  see  so  ready  to  meet  death 
in  all  its  forms  of  cruelty,  were  it  not  agreeable  to  our 
religion  to  be  killed  rather  than  to  kill. 

"  We  could  also  make  a  terrible  war  upon  you  with- 
out arms  or  fighting,  by  being  so  passively  revenge- 
ful as  only  to  leave  you  : — if  such  a  numerous  host  of 
Christians  should  but  retire  from  the  empire  into  some 
remote  re2:ion  of  the  world,  the  loss  of  so  many  men 
of  all  ranks  and  degrees,  would  leave  a  hideous  gap, 
and  a  shameful  scar  upon  the  government ;  and 
the  very  evacuation  would  be  abundant  revenge. — 
You  would  stand  aghast  at  your  desolation,  and  be 
struck  dumb  at  the  general  silence  and  horror  of  nature, 
as  if  the  whole  world  was  departed.  You  would  be  at 
a  loss  for  men  to  govern,  and  in  the  pitiful  remains  you 
would  find  more  enemies  than  citizens  ;  but  now  you 
exceed  in  friends,  because  you  exceed  in  Christians."* 

About  thirty  years  after  Tertullian,  Origen,  in  his  dis- 
course against  Celsus,  remarks,  that  throughout  all 
Greece,  and  in  all  other  nations,  there  were  "innumer- 
able and  immense  multitudes,  who,  having  left  the  laws 
of  their  country  and  those  they  esteemed  gods,"  had 
"  given  themselves  to  the  religion  of  Christ ;  and  this 
not  without  the  bitterest  resentment  from  the  idolaters, 
by  whom  they  were  frequently  put  to  torture,  and  some- 
times to  death."  He  also  says,  "  It  is  wonderful  to 
observe,  how  in  so  short  a  time,  the  religion  has  in- 
creased, amidst  punishment  and  death,  and  every  kind 

*  Tertull.  Ap.  c.  xxxvii. 


o2         REMARK  A  r.LE    PROGRESS    OF    CHRISTIANITY. 

of  torture." — In  tlic  same  work,  referring  to  Christians, 
lie  remarks :  "  By  how  much  the  more  emperors  and 
governors  of  provinces  and  the  people  every  where 
strove  to  depress  them,  so  much  the  more  have  they 
increased  and  prevailed  exceedingly." 

9.  These  ancient  testimonies  (and  others  might  be 
added)  show  that  Christianity  speedily  spread  abroad 
to  an  astonishing  extent.  This  rapid  extension  of 
Christianity  appears  the  more  remarkable,  when  w^e 
consider  its  nature.  Think  how  averse  even  the  pro- 
fessedly Christian  world  are  to  comply  with  what  it  re- 
quires ;  diink  liov\^  difficult  you  find  this  duty ;  and  then 
think  how  much  more  difficult  must  ancient  heathens, 
immersed  in  the  lowest  depths  of  sensuality  and  vice, 
have  found  it  to  embrace  the  holy  Gospel.  Compare 
what  modern  missions  have  been  able  to  effect,  when 
not  placed  in  such  unfavourable  circumstances  as  the 
apostles  were,  but  under  the  protection  of  powerful 
governments.  How  few  converts  have  crowned  their 
labours.  Yet  they  are  preaching  the  same  Gospel ;  and 
what  can  be  the  reason  of  so  great  a  difference  in  their 
success,  but  that  the  first  enjoyed  peculiar  divine  aid, 
and  at  once  convinced  their  hearers  of  the  truth  of 
what  they  preached,  by  commanding  the  diseased  to 
health,  or  the  dead  to  Hfe,  while  the  latter  labour  to 
convince  them  by  evidence,  which,  to  such  persons,  and 
so  situated,  they  can  but  slowly  unfold  ?  Suppose  twelve 
men,  possessed  of  no  supernatural  powers,  were  now  to 
disperse  themselves  into  different  countries,  that  they 
might  disciple  the  world,  you  cannot  suppose  they 
would  meet  with  success ;  yet  on  such  an  errand  twelve 
men,  professedly  the  followers  of  a  crucified  Master, 
once  set  out,  and  soon  converted  thousands  and  tens 
of  thousands.  They  had  to  encounter  the  pride  of 
philosophers,  the  riches  of  the  wealthy,  the  influence  of 


REMARKABLE    PROGRESS    OF    CHRISTIANITY.         53 

priests,  the  power  of  princes,  and  worse  than  all  these, 
all  the  corrupt  passions  of  the  human  heart  in  the  whole 
mass  of  mankind,  and  yet  they  triumphed  !  Theirs  was 
a  message  of  such  a  nature,  and  delivered  under  such 
circumstances,  that  not  one  human  hcing  would  naturally 
be  friendly  to  it.  Princes  would  scorn  Galilean  fish- 
ermen, going  forth  as  instructors  of  the  world.  Phi- 
losophers Avould  despise  a  wisdom  which  represented 
their  boasted  wisdom  as  folly.  Priests  would  hate  a 
system  that  would  overturn  their  altars,  desolate  their 
temples,  and  strip  them  of  all  their  ill-gotton  wealth,  in- 
fluence, and  grandeur.  The  people  would  abhor  a 
system  that  forbade  all  their  idolatrous  revellings,  and 
struck  at  the  root  of  all  their  superstitions.  And  prin- 
ces, philosophers,  priests,  and  people  would  all  hate  a 
religion  that  declared  them  to  be  perishing  in  sin; 
that  pronounced  their  hearts  depraved,  their  lives  wick- 
ed, their  hopes  false,  their  worship  abominable  idolatry, 
and  their  gods  senseless  blocks  of  wood  and  stone ; 
which  would  compromise  nothing,  but  firmly  required 
the  renunciation  of  all  their  vices,  or  foretold  their 
eternal  destruction  ;  and  that  thus  left  them  no  alterna- 
tive between  repentance  and  perdition.  Yet,  though 
the  religion  of  the  Gospel  is  of  so  holy  and  unyielding 
a  nature,  that  every  class  in  society  would  be  armed 
against  it.  and  an  enemy  be  found  in  every  human  heart ; 
yet,  hated,  despised,  and  persecuted,  it  marched  on  from 
conquering  to  conquer ;  desolating  idol  temples,  over- 
turning the  hoary  systems  of  heathen  superstition,  and 
in  its  most  effectual  triumph,  bringing  millions  to  re- 
ceive Jesus  Christ  as  their  all  for  time,  and  their  bliss 
for  eternity.  Whence  sprung  these  triumphs  but  from 
the  power  of  the  Most  High  ?  In  them  we  see  the 
finger  of  God. 

That  this  was  the  cause  of  its  triumph,  cannot  reason- 
5* 


54  THE    SPIRIT    AND    CONDUCT 

ably  be  denied  ;  yet  if  a  reasonable  denial  were  as  pos- 
sible as  it  is  impossible,  it  has  been  strikingly  re- 
marked, "  If  it  b(3  denied  that  Jesus  performed  mira- 
cles, how  crreat  then  is  that  miracle,  that  so  many  should 
be  the  followers  of  a  man  poor,  despised,  destitute  of 
miraculous  power ;  that  when  he  is  dead  they  should 
die  for  him." 

10.  After  this  survey  of  some  decisive  proofs  of  the 
divinity  of  Christianity,  and  this  glance  at  its  rapid  dif- 
fusion, it  will  not  be  uninteresting,  and  cannot  be  un- 
instructivc,  to  notice  the  spirit  with  which  the  primi- 
tive disciples  suffered  the  persecutions  to  which,  for 
nearly  three  centuries,  they  were  more  or  less  exposed. 
Besides  conliscations,  imprisonments,  torments,  and 
death,  they  were  loaded  with  the  basest  calumnies. 
They  were  represented  as  indulging  in  their  religious 
meetings  in  the  most  horrid  impurities,  and  as  eating 
the  flesh  and  drinking  the  blood  of  infants.  They  were 
represented  as  atheists,  because  they  worshipped  not 
the  idols  of  the  nations.  The  name  of  Christian  was 
frequently  suflicicnt  to  ensure  their  condemnation. 
The  Lord's  prophecy  was  strikingly  verified ;  "  Ye 
shall  be  hated  of  all  men  for  nuj  name's  sake.''''  Many 
ailecting.  and,  to  a  pious  mind,  delightful  illustrations  of 
their  spirit  amidst  these  scenes  of  sulTering  are  to  be 
found  in  the  writings  of  the  primitive  apologists. 

Justin  Martyr  writes,  "  It  is  a  maxim  among  us  Chris- 
tians, tliat  we  cannot  possibly  suffer  any  real  hurt,  if  we 
cannot  be  convicted  of  doing  any  real  evil.  You  may 
kill  us  indeed^  but  you  cannot  hurt  us. — It  is  in  our 
power,  at  any  time,  to  escape  your  torments,  by  deny- 
ing the  faith,  when  you  question  us  about  it.  but  we 
scorn  to  purchase  life  at  the  expense  of  a  lie^  for  our 
souls  arc  winged  with  desire  of  a  life  of  eternal  dura- 
tion and  purity,  of  an  immediate  conversation  with  God 


OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHRISTIANS.  5D 

the  Father  and  Maker  of  all  thiiiirs ;  we  are  in  haste  to 
be  confessing  and  finishing  our  faith,  being  fully  per- 
suaded that  we  shall  arrive  at  this  beatific  state,  if  we 
approve  ourselves  to  God  by  our  works ;  and  express 
by  our  obedience  our  passion  for  that  divine  life,  which 
is  never  interrupted  by  any  clashing  evil. 

'•  Upon  the  first  word  you  hear  of  our  expectations 
of  a  kinodom,  you  rashly  conclude  it  must  be  a  king- 
dom  u])un  earth,  notwithstanding  all  we  can  say  that  it 
is  one  in  heaven;  and  though  you  have  such  an  experi- 
mental proof  to  the  contrary,  from  our  professing  our- 
selves Christians  upon  examination,  when  we  know 
death  to  be  the  certain  consequence  of  such  a  profes- 
sion :  but  were  our  thoughts  fixed  upon  a  kingdom  of 
this  world,  we  should  surely  deny  our  religion,  for  the 
safety  of  our  lives ;  and  have  recourse  to  all  the  methods 
of  concealment,  to  secure  us  unhurt  against  the  g-ood 
day  we  expected.  But  since  our  hopes  do  not  fasten 
upon  things  present,  the  preservation  of  our  lives  is  the 
least  of  our  concern,  because  we  know  our  murderers 
can  cut  us  short  but  a  few  days  ;  for  all  must  die." 

'•Our  Master  Jesus  Christ,  from  whom  we  take  the 
name  of  Christians,  the  Son  and  Apostle  of  that  God, 
who  is  the  supreme  Lord  and  Maker  of  the  universe, 
has  foretold  our  sufi'erings  ;  which  to  us  is  a  manifest 
confirmation  of  the  truth  of  all  his  other  doctrines,  be- 
cause we  see  these  things  fulfilled  according  to  his  pre- 
diction ;  for  this  or  nothing  is  the  work  of  God,  to  de- 
clare a  thing  shall  come  to  be  long  before  it  is  in  being, 
and  then  to  bring  about  that  thing  to  pass  according  to 
the  same  declaration." 

]Minucius  Felix,  who  lived  about  the  same  time  as 
Tertullian,  remarks  ;  "How  fair  a  spectacle  in  the  sight 
of  God  is  a  Christian  entering  the  lists  with  affliction, 
and,  with  a  noble  firmness,  combating  menaces,  racks, 


56  THE    SPIRIT    AND    CONDUCT 

and  tortures  !  When,  witli  a  disdainful  smile,  he  march- 
es to  execution,  through  the  clamours  of  the  people, 
and  iiisuhs  tlic  horrors  of  the  executioner !  When 
he  bravely  maintains  his  liberty  against  kings  and  prin- 
ces, and  submits  to  God  alone,  whose  servant  he  is? 
When  like  a  conqueror  he  triumphs  over  the  judge  that 
condemns  him  !  A  soldier  of  God  is  neither  abandoned 
in  misery  nor  lost  in  death.  And  though  a  Christian 
may  seem  to  be  miserable,  yet  in  reality  he  can  never 
be  so.  Some  sufferers  you  yourselves  exalt  to  the  skies ; 
such  .as  Mutius  Scevola,  who,  having  missed  his  aim  in 
killing  a  king,  voluntarily  burnt  the  mistaking  hand,  and 
so  saved  his  life  by  his  hardiness.  And  how  many  per- 
sons are  there  among  us  who  have  suffered  not  only 
their  hand,  but  their  whole  body  to  be  burnt,  without 
complaining,  when  their  deliverance  was  in  their  own 
power  ?  But  why  do  I  compare  our  men  with  your 
3Iucius,  or  Aquilius,  or  Regulus,  when  our  very  chil- 
dren, our  sons  and  our  daughters,  by  an  inspired  pa- 
tience, make  a  mere  jest  of  your  gibbets,  and  racks  and 
wild  beasts,  and  all  your  other  scarecrows  of  cruelty. 
And  is  not  this  enough  to  convince  you,  that  nothing 
but  the  strongest  reasons  could  persuade  men  to  suffer 
at  this  rate ;  and  nothing  less  than  Almighty  pow  er  sup- 
port them?" 

The  declarations  of  TertuUian,  when  appealing  upon 
this  subject  to  the  persecutors  themselves,  are  very 
spirited  and  peculiarly  pleasing;  "We  argue  against  our 
adversaries  upon  two  articles — for  hating  us  ignorantly, 
and,  consequently,  for  hating  us  unjustly.  And  that 
you  hate  us  ignorantly  I  prove  from  hence,  because  all 
who  hated  us  heretofore  did  it  upon  the  same  ground, 
being  no  longer  able  to  continue  our  enemies,  than  they 
continued  ignorant  of  our  religion  ;  their  hatred  and 
their  ignorance  fell  together.     Such  are  the  men  you 


OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHRISTIANS.  57 

now  see  Christians,  manifestly  overcome  by  the  piety 
of  our  profession;  and  wlio  now  reflect  upon  their 
lives  past  with  abhorrence,  and  profess  it  to  the  world. 
— We  have  been  healliens  as  you  are,  for  men  are  not 
born  but  made  Christians. — We  say  we  are  Christians, 
and  say  it  to  the  whole  world,  under  the  hands  of  the 
executioner,  and  in  the  midst  of  all  the  tortures  you 
exercise  us  with  to  unsay  it.  Torn  and  mangled,  and 
covered  over  in  our  own  blood,  we  cry  out  as  loud  as 
we  are  able  to  cry,  that  we  are  worshippers  of  God 
through  Christ.  It  is  in  every  one's  mouth,  that  Christ 
was  a  man,  and  a  man  too  condemned  to  death  by  the 
very  Jews — however  this,  their  wickedly  ungrateful 
treatment  of  Christ  makes  us  not  ashamed  of  our  Mas- 
ter ;  so  far  from  it  that  it  is  the  joy  and  triumph  of  our 
souls  to  be  called  by  our  Lord's  name  and  condemned 
for  it.  The  truth  we  profess  we  know  to  be  a  stranger 
upon  earth,  and  she  expects  not  friends  in  a  strange 
land;  but  she  came  from  heaven,  and  her  abode  is 
there,  and  there  are  all  our  hopes,  all  our  friends,  and 
all  our  preferments. 

"  The  guilty  hunt  for  refuge  in  darkness,  and  when 
apprehended,  tremble;  when  accused,  deny;  and  are 
hardly  to  be  tormented  into  a  confession ;  w^hen  con- 
demned, they  sink  down  in  sadness,  and  turn  over  their 
number  of  sins  into  confusion  of  conscience,  and  charge 
the  guilt  upon  the  stars  or  destiny ;  unwilling  to  ac- 
knowledge that  as  their  own  act,  which  they  acknowl- 
edge to  be  criminal. 

"  But  do  you  see  anything  like  this  in  the  deportment 
of  Christians  ?  Not  one  Christian  blushes  or  repents, 
unless  it  be  for  not  having  been  a  Christian  sooner. 
If  a  Christian  goes  to  trial,  he  goes  like  a  victor,  with 
the  air  of  triumph ;  if  he  is  impeached,  he  glories  in 
it;  if  indicted,  he  makes  no  defence  at  bar;  when  in- 


58  THE    SPIRIT    AND    CONDUCT 

tcrrojratcd,  he  frankly  confesses ;  and  when  condemned, 
returns  thanks  to  Iiis  judires. 

"  What  reason,  say  you,  have  we  Christians  to  com- 
pkiin  of  (»ur  siifibrings,  when  we  are  so  fond  of  perse- 
cution? we  ought  rather  to  love  those  who  persecuted 
us  so  sweetly  to  our  heart's  content.  It  is  true,  in- 
deed, we  are  not  against  sufering  when  the  Captain 
of  our  salvation  calls  us  forth  to  suffer ;  but  let  me  tell 
you,  it  is  with  us  in  our  Christian  warfare  as  it  is  with 
you  in  yours,  we  choose  to  suffer  as  you  choose  to 
lig-ht;  but  no  man  chooses  fighting  for  fighting's  sake, 
because  he  cannot  engage  without  fear  and  hazard  of 
life.  Nevertheless,  when  the  brave  soldier  finds  he 
must  engage,  he  battles  it  off  with  all  his  power,  and 
if  he  comes  off  victorious,  is  full  of  joy,  though  just 
before  not  without  his  complaints  of  a  military  life, 
because  he  has  obtained  his  end,  laden  with  glory,  laden 
with  spoil.  Thus  it  is  with  Christians  :  we  enter  into 
battle  when  we  are  cited  to  your  tribunals,  there  to 
combat  for  truth  with  the  hazard  of  our  life.  To  set 
up  truth  is  our  victory,  and  the  victor's  glory  is  to 
please  his  God,  and  the  precious  spoil  of  that  victory 
is  eternal  life ;  and  this  life  we  certainly  win  by  dying 
for  it ;  therefore  we  conquer  when  Ave  are  killed  ;  and 
being  killed,  are  out  of  the  reach  of  you,  and  all  other 
vexations  for  ever. 

"  Give  us  now  what  names  you  please,  from  the  in- 
struments of  cruelty  by  which  you  torture  us;  call  us 
sarmcnticians  and  semaxians,  because  you  fasten  us 
to  trunks  of  trees,  and  stick  us  about  with  fagots  to  set 
us  on  fire ;  yet  let  me  tell  you.  when  we  are  thus  begirt 
and  dressed  about  witli  fire,  we  are  then  in  our  most  tri- 
umphant apparel.  These  are  our  victorious  palms  and 
robes  of  glory ;  and  mounted  upon  our  funeral  pile  we 
look  upon  ourselves  in  our  triumphal  chariot.     No 


OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHRISTIANS.  59 

wonder,  then,  that  such  passive  heroes  please  not  those 
they  vancpiisli  witli  such  conquering  sufferings ;  and 
tlierefore  we  pass  for  men  of  despair,  and  violently 
bent  upon  our  own  destruction.  However,  that  which 
you  are  pleased  to  call  madness  and  despair  in  us,  are 
the  very  actions  Avhich,  under  Virtue's  standard,  lift 
up  your  sons  of  fame  and  glory,  and  emblazon  them  to 
future  ages.  A  man  shall  suffer  with  honour  for  his 
country,  for  the  empire,  for  a  friend,  what  he  is  not 
tolerated  to  suffer  for  his  God.  He  who  expects  a  real 
resurrection,  and  in  hopes  of  this  suffers  for  the  word 
of  God,  shall  pass  among  you  for  a  sot  and  a  madman." 

The  invincible  passive  courage  of  the  early  Christians 
contributed  greatly  to  promote  the  diffusion  of  religion. 
Lactantius  observes,  "  It  is  through  our  divine  peace 
and  the  miracle  of  our  courage,  that  multitudes  come 
over  to  us.  For  when  the  common  people  behold  men 
torn  to  pieces  by  various  kinds  of  torments,  yet  main- 
tain unconquered  patience  in  the  midst  of  their  wearied 
tormentors,  they  suppose,  what  is  really  the  case,  that 
the  consent  of  so  many,  and  the  perseverance  of  the 
dying,  cannot  be  vain  and  unfounded ;  and  that  patience 
to  overcome  such  dreadful  torments  could  not  exist, 
unless  from  God." 

Much  of  a  practical  nature  may  be  learned  from 
contemplating  these  illustrations  of  primitive  fortitude, 
and  much  more  from  observing  the  spirit  of  elevated 
piety  which  glowed  in  the  hearts,  and  is  breathed  forth 
in  the  writings,  of  some  of  the  early  followers  of  the 
Lord. 

Justhi  remarks;  "It  is  certain,  we  cannot  justly  be 
branded  as  atheists,  we  who  worship  the  Creator  of  the 
universe,  not  with  blood,  libations,  and  incense,  of 
which  we  are  sufficiently  taught  he  stands  in  no  need; 
but  we  exalt  him,  to  the  best  of  our  power,  with  the 


$0  THE    SPIRIT    AND    CONDUCT 

rational  service  of  prayers  and  praises,  in  all  the  ob- 
lations we  make  to  liim ;  believing  this  to  be  the  only 
hononr  worthy  of  him;  not  to  consume  the  creatures 
which  he  has  given  us  for  our  use,  and  the  comfort  of 
those  that  want,  in  the  fire  by  sacrifice,  but  to  approve 
ourselves  thankful  to  him  in  the  rational  pomp  of  the 
most  solemn  hymns  at  the  altar,  in  acknowledgment  of 
our  creation,  preservation,  and  all  the  blessings  of  vari- 
etv  in  things  and  seasons  ;  and  also  for  the  hopes  of  a 
resurrection  to  a  life  incorruptible,  which  we  are  sure 
to  have  for  asking,  provided  we  ask  in  faith.  Who 
that  knoAVs  any  thing  of  us  will  not  confess  this  to  be 
our  way  of  worshipping  ?  and  who  can  stigmatize  such 
worshippers  for  atheists  ?  The  Master  who  instruct- 
ed us  in  this  kind  of  worship,  and  w^ho  was  born  for 
this  very  purpose,  and  crucified  under  Pontius  Pilate, 
procurator  of  Judea,  in  the  reign  of  Tiberius  Coesar,  is 
Jesus  (.^hrist,  whom  we  know  to  be  the  Son  of  the  true 
God,  and  therefore  hold  him  the  second  in  order,  and 
the  Prophetic  Spirit  the  third.  Here  they  look  upon 
it  as  dovv^nright  madness  to  assign  to  a  crucified  man 
the  next  place  to  the  immutable,  eternal  God,  parent 
of  all  things,  being  entirely  in  the  dark  as  to  the  mys- 
tery of  this  order." 

"We  are  taught,  and  most  firmly  believe  and  know, 
that  they  only  are  the  acceptable  worshippers  of  God 
who  form  their  minds  by  the  mind  Eternal,  and  ex- 
press it  in  temperance,  justice,  humanity,  and  such 
other  virtues  as  are  the  essential  excellences  of  the  di- 
vine nature." 

"  We  who  heretofore  delighted  in  debauchery,  now 
strictly  contain  within  the  bonds  of  chastity.  We,  who 
devoted  ourselves  to  magic  arts,  now  consecrate  our- 
selves entirely  to  the  good,  unbegotton  God.  We,  who 
loved  nothing  like  our  possessions,  now  produce  all 


OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHRISTIANS.  61 

* 

we  have  in  common,  and  spread  our  whole  stock  be- 
fore our  indigent  brethren.  We,  who  were  pointed 
with  mutual  hatred  and  destruction,  and  would  not  so 
much  as  warm  ourselves  at  the  same  lire  with  those 
of  a  different  tribe,  upon  the  account  of  different  insti- 
tutions, now,  since  the  coming  of  Christ,  dwell  and 
diet  together,  and  pray  for  our  enemies ;  and  all  our 
returns  for  evil  are  but  the  gentlest  persuasives  to  con- 
vert those  who  unjustly  hate  us. 

"A  Christian  hand  must  by  no  means  be  lifted  up  in 
resistance  ;  for  Christ  will  not  have  his  disciples  like 
the  rest  of  the  world,  but  orders  them  to  shine  with  a 
distinguished  patience  and  meekness,  and  to  win  men 
over  from  their  sins  by  such  gentle  arts  of  conversion. 
And  I  could  give  you  a  proof  of  the  influence  of  such 
bright  examples  from  many  converts  among  us,  who, 
from  men  of  violence  and  oppression,  were  transformed 
into  quite  another  nature,  perfectly  overcome  by  the 
passive  courage  of  their  Christian  neiglibours  ;  or  by 
observing  the  new  astonishing  patience  of  such  injured 
Christians  as  they  chanced  to  travel  with  ;  or  the  ex- 
perience they  had  of  their  fidelity  in  their  dealings." 

Athenagoras,  who  wrote  an  apology  for  Christianity, 
which  is  inscribed  to  the  emperor  Marcus  Aurelius, 
soon  after  Justin's  martyrdom,  writes,  "  What  are  our 
rules  ?  Even  these  :  '  Love  your  enemies,  bless  them 
that  curse  you,  pray  for  them  that  persecute  you,  that 
ye  may  be  the  children  of  your  Father  who  is  in 
Iieaven  :  for  he  maketh  his  sun  rise  on  the  evil  and  on 
the  good,  and  sendeth  rain  on  the  just  and  on  the  un- 
just.' Since  I  make  my  apology  before  emperors  who 
are  philosophers,  let  me  challenge  any  of  the  tribe  of 
sophisters,  who  yet  pretend  to  give  their  readers  such 
information  and  happiness  from  these  studies,  to  show 
such  a  mild  disposition  of  soul,  a  heart  so  cleared  from 
6 


62  THE    SPIRIT    AND    CONDUCT 

rancour  and  malice,  as  to  return  even  their  enemies 
love  for  hatred  ;  to  bless  those  who  unjustly  revile 
them ;  nay,  to  pray  for  those  who  attempt  their  very 
lives.  Among  us  you  find  unlettered  men,  ordinary 
mechanics,  and  women,  though  they  cannot  by  words 
defend  or  advantage  our  religion,  yet  adorn  it,  and  set 
it  off  by  bright  examples  in  their  actions.  They  study 
not  the  fineness  of  composition,  but  practise  the  solidity 
of  virtue  ;  when  struck  they  strike  not  again  ;  they 
prosecute  not  those  who  rob  them  ;  they  are  charita- 
ble to  such  as  stand  in  need  of  their  assistance ;  and, 
in  a  word,  love  their  neighbours,  that  is  all  men,  as 
themselves.  Being  thoroughly  convinced  that  we  shall 
one  day  give  an  account  of  our  lives  and  actions  to  the 
great  Creator  of  us  and  all  the  world,  we  choose  such 
a  gentle,  meek,  and  generally  despised,  method  of 
life ;  assuring  ourselves  that  we  can  suffer  no  evil  from 
our  persecutors,  (no,  though  it  were  the  loss  of  our 
very  lives,)  which  can  be  of  any  value  or  considera- 
tion when  compared  to  that  exceeding  great  reward 
which  God  will  give  us  hereafter. 

"  Our  accusers  charge  us  with  feasting  on  human  flesh 
and  incests.  The  integrity  of  our  lives  is  not  blem- 
ished by  the  accusations  of  our  enemies.  Before  God 
we  are  still  innocent.  Had' wo  no  hopes  beyond  the 
present  life  and  sensual  enjoyments,  there  might  be  a 
probability  we  might  follow  the  dictates  of  flesh  and 
blood,  and  be  lovers  of  pleasure  and  lovers  of  money. 
But  we  believe  that  an  omnipresent  and  omniscient 
Being  observes  our  thoughts  and  actions,  and  that  he 
is  light  and  sees  the  hidden  things  of  our  hearts  ;  we 
believe  that  after  being  delivered  from  this  mortal  con- 
dition, we  shall  enjoy  a  happier  and  an  eternal  heavenly 
life  hereafter,  living  for  ever  with  God,  not  subject  to 
passion  or  cliange,  not  like  flesh  and  blood,  though  we 


or    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHRISTIANS.  G3 

shall  have  bodies,  but  like  pure  heavenly  spirits;  and 
the  trutli  of  this  we  confess  even  at  the  stake  and  in 
the  midst  of  the  flames.  Since  this  is  our  faith,  it  is 
absurd  to  suppose  we  should  study  and  endeavour  to 
conmiit  such  unheard-of  wickedness,  and  voluntarily 
expose  ourselves  to  be  punished  by  the  great  Judge. 
How  can  we  be  suspected  of  any  breach  of  chastity, 
who  dare  not  use  our  very  eyes  otherwise  than  God 
designed  them,  that  is,  to  be  lights  to  our  bodies?  who 
think  that  to  look  with  desire  is  to  commit  adultery, 
nay,  believe  we  shall  be  judged  for  our  very  thoughts? 
For  we  are  not  under  a  human  dispensation  and  law, 
where  we  might  be  wielded  and  concealed  ;  but  we  have 
received  our  law  from  God  ;  and  we  have  a  law  which 
requires  the  most  exact  justice  with  regard  to  ourselves, 
and  from  us  to  our  neighbours.  Therefore,  according 
to  the  differences  of  age,  we  esteem  some  as  brothers 
and  sisters,  and  others  as  sons  and  daughters.  The 
elder  we  honour  as  tlithers  and  mothers ;  and  esteem  it 
one  of  the  greatest  acts  of  our  religion  to  preserve 
chaste  and  unpolluted  the  bodies  of  those  whom  we 
call  brothers  and  sisters,  or  by  any  name  of  kindred. 
Having  a  sure  hope  of  everlasting  life,  we  despise  the 
present  sensual  pleasures  and  enjoyments.  Our  reli- 
gion is  not  a  study  of  words,  but  a  practice  of  actions 
and  virtues." 

Tertullian  observes,  "  To  wish  ill,  to  do  ill,  to  speak 
ill,  or  to  think  ill  of  any  one,  we  are  forbidden  without 
exception.  What  is  injustice  to  an  emperor  is  injustice 
to  his  slave." 

"  The  God  we  pray  to  is  the  eternal  God,  the  true 
God,  the  God  of  life.  To  this  Almighty  Maker  and 
Disposer  of  all  things,  it  is  that  we  Christians  offer  up 
our  prayers,  with  eyes  lifted  up  to  heaven,  unfolded 
hands  in  token  of  our  simplicity,  and  with  uncovered 


64  THE    SPIRIT    AXD    CONDUCT 

licads,  because  we  have  nothing  to  blush  for  in  our 
devotion,  and  witliout  a  prompter,  because  we  pray 
with  our  hearts  rather  than  our  tongues. — These  are 
ljk>ssings  I  cannot  persuade  myself  to  ask  of  any  but 
him  who  I  know  can  give  them  ;  and  that  is  my  God, 
and  only  my  God  who  has  them  at  his  disposal ;  and 
I  am  one  to  whom  he  has  obliged  himself  by  promise 
to  ffrant  what  I  ask,  if  I  ask  as  I  should  do.  For  I 
am  his  servant,  and  serve  him  only  for  whose  service 
I  am  killed  all  the  day  long ;  and  to  whom  I  offer  that 
noble  and  greatest  of  sacrifices  which  he  has  com- 
manded— a  prayer  that  comes  from  a  chaste  body,  an 
innocent  soul,  and  a  sanctified  spirit." 

"Thus  then  while  we  are  stretching  forth  our  hands 
to  God,  let  your  tormenting  irons  harrow  our  flesh  ; 
let  your  gibbets  exalt  us,  or  your  fires  lick  up  our 
bodies,  or  your  swords  cut  off  our  heads,  or  your  beasts 
tread  us  to  the  earth.  For  a  Christian  upon  his  knees 
to  his  God,  is  in  a  posture  of  defence  against  all  the 
evils  you  can  crowd  upon  him." 

Minucius  furnishes  a  charming  delineation  of  what, 
doubtless,  in  his  day  multitudes  of  Christians  w^ere. 
"  Our  feasts  are  not  only  chaste,  but  sober ;  for  we 
neither  indulge  in  eating,  nor  do  we  spin  out  the  repast 
with  wine,  but  temper  cheerfulness  with  gravity.  Pure 
in  discourse,  in  body  purer.  Nor  are  we  factious  though 
we  are  all  bent  upon  the  same  kingdom,  and  relish  but 
one  and  the  same  happiness ;  for  w^e  are  as  quiet  and 
inoffensive  in  our  assemblies,  as  when  we  are  all  alone. 
The  daily  increase  of  our  numbers  is  so  far  from  a 
disparagement  to  our  religion,  that  it  is  a  testimony  in 
its  commendation ;  for  the  Christian  party  are  faithful 
adherents  to  their  holy  profession,  and  are  continually 
augmented  by  heathens.  Nor  do  we  know  one  another 
by  any  private  marks  upon  our  bodies,  as  you  vainly 


OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHRISTIANS.  65 

imagine,  but  our  iimnccnce  and  modesty  arc  our  badges 
of  distinction.  The  love  which,  to  your  sorrow,  we 
express  to  one  another,  is  because  we  are  perfect 
strangers  to  all  hatred.  And  whereas  we  call  ourselves 
hrethren,  a  title  you  most  cnyy  us,  for  it  is  because  we 
look  upon  ourselves  as  the  children  of  the  one  God, 
parent  of  all  things ;  as  partakers  of  the  same  iliith,  and 
co-heirs  of  the  same  hope.  You  punish  wickedness 
in  the  overt  act,  and  we  look  upo)i  it  as  criminal  when 
it  goes  no  further  than  the  bare  thought;  you  dread 
the  consciousness  of  others,  and  we  stand  in  awe  of 
nothing  but  our  own  consciences,  without  which  we 
cannot  be  Christians.  Your  prisons  are  in  a  manner 
stifled  with  criminals,  but  they  are  all  heathens,  not  a 
Christian  there,  but  either  a  confessor  or  an  apostate. 
— Many  of  us  are  reproached  with  poverty.  I  must 
tell  you  that  we  look  upon  it  not  as  our  infamy  but  our 
honour.  Yet  who  can  be  said  to  be  poor  who  fnids 
himself  in  no  want?  who  has  no  gapings  after  another's 
possessions,  who  is  rich  in  God  ?  We  had  much  rather 
be  able  to  despise  riches  than  to  possess  them.  Inno- 
cence is  the  top  of  our  desire;  patience  the  thing  we 
beg  for ;  and  we  had  rather  be  abundantly  good  than 
extravagantly  rich.  And  though  we  lie  under  afliictions 
of  body,  to  which,  as  men,  we  are  exposed,  yet  we 
look  upon  this  not  as  our  punishment  but  our  warfore. 
It  is  not  therefore  that  we  are  such  sufferers  because 
our  God  is  either  unable  or  unwilling  to  help  us,  since 
he  is  both  the  Sovereign  of  the  world,  and  a  lover  of 
his  servants,  but  he  tries  and  examines  us  by  adversity." 
"We  celebrate  the  funerals  of  our  dead  with  the 
same  decency  and  quiet  in  which  we  live  ;  dress  up  no 
withering  garland,  but  the  never-fading  crown  of  glory 
we  expect  from  God  ;  we  who  sit  down  contented  with 
the  liberality  of  our  God  in  this  life,  Avho  live  above 
6* 


66  THE    SPIRIT    AND    CONDUCT,    ETC. 

fears  in  the  hopes  of  future  fehcity,  and  are  animated 
in  tliese  liopes  by  the  assurances  we  now  have  of  that 
divine  majesty  which  is  so  present  to  us  in  time  of 
need,  thus  happy  shall  we  lind  ourselves  in  the  resur- 
rection, and  blessed  all  our  life  long-  in  the  contempla- 
tion of  what  shall  be.  Behold  how  all  nature  is  at  work 
to  comfort  us  with  images  of  our  future  resurrection. 
The  sun  sets  and  rises  again  ;  the  stars  glide  away  and 
return ;  the  flowers  die  and  revive  ;  the  trees  put  forth 
afresh  after  the  decays  of  age ;  and  that  which  thou 
sowest  is  not  quickened  except  it  die.  Just  so  may  our 
bodies  lie  in  the  grave  till  the  season  of  resurrection. 
Why  then  so  hasty  for  a  resurrection  in  the  dead  of 
winter  ?  We  must  wait  with  patience  for  the  spring  of 
human  bodies."* 

These  testimonies  to  the  spirit  of  the  early  disciples 
of  the  Saviour,  are  not  valuable  merely  as  illustrating 
the  character  of  those  who  by  thousands  sacrificed  their 
all  for  Christ,  but  as  teaching  us  what  should  be  the 
spirit  of  Christians  now.  Reader,  are  you  professedly 
a  Christian  ?  If  so,  are  you  influenced  by  the  spirit  just 
described  ?  Do  you  so  count  all  things  loss  for  Christ's 
sake  as  to  be  willing  to  suffer  reproach  and  shame,  and 
every  evil  for  him  ?  Are  your  affections  placed  above, 
and  are  you  panting  for  a  home  in  Heaven  ?  and,  wliile 
struggling  through  the  wilderness  of  life,  have  you 
learned  to  display  the  meekness  and  gentleness,  the 
benevolence  and  kindness  of  Christ  ?  Have  you 
learned  to  wish  ill,  to  do  ill,  to  speak  ill,  to  think  ill  of 
none  ?  to  conquer  foes  by  kindness,  and  enmity  by 
love  ?     Perhaps,  instead  of  this,  you  feel  convinced  that 

*  The  passages  hero  brought  together  are  collected  from  the  Apologies  of 
the  writers  quoted.  As  most  of  these  works  are  brief,  it  is  judged  unnecessary 
to  refer  to  tlie  parts  in  which  the  selected  passages  are  to  be  found.  The  trau- 
slatiou  of  Minucius  Felix,  Justiu,  and  Tertullian,  is  that  by  Reeves,  though 
occasionally  slightly  altered. 


REMARKS    ON    PROPHECY.  67 

no  one  part  of  the  descrij)tion  aj)plics  to  yourself.  If 
so,  (leliulc  not  yourself  by  fancying-  that  you  are  a  Chris- 
tian, when  your  character  is  as  diflerent  from  that  of 
those  who  first  bore  that  honoured  name  as  darkness 
is  from  light.  But  perhaps  you  can  trace  the  likeness 
in  yourself,  though  in  lines  too  faint.  Then,  .0  pray 
that  you  may  more  resemble  them,  who  through  faith 
and  patience  inherit  the  promises; — above  all,  strive 
and  pray  that  you  may  resemble  their  exalted  Lord, 
from  whose  grace  and  example  all  their  excellences 
were  derived. 


CHAPTER    III. 

THE  PROPHECIES  OF  THE  OLD    AND    NEW  TESTAMENT  A 
I  PROOF  OF  THE  DIVINE  ORIGIN  ON  CHRISTIANITY. 

1.  Prophecy  is  another  kind  of  evidence  which 
strongly  attests  the  divinity  of  Christianity,  and  of  the 
holy  scriptures.  Futurity  is  so  hidden  from  the  inspec- 
tion of  man,  that  no  human  being  can  certainly  foretell 
the  events  of  the  morrow  ;  but  still  more  unable  is  man 
to  declare  what  shall  happen  in  distant  ages,  among  the 
unborn  generations  of  nations  not  vet  existino;.  Yet 
it  is  an  incontrovertible  fact,  that  many  events  of  this 
description  were  foretold  by  die  prophets,  by  the  Lord 
Jesus,  or  his  apostles.  Some  of  these  have  long  since 
been  fulfilled,  and  others  are  now  accomplishing. 

2.  Nearly  3800  years  ago,  it  was  foretold  respecting 
Ishmael,  the  father  of  the  Arabians,  "  He  shall  be  a 
wild  man,  his  hand  will  be  against  every  man,  and 
every  man's  hand  against  him ;  and  he  shall  dwell  in 
the  presence  of  all  his  brethren,"  Gen.  xvi.  12.    This 


68        PROPHECIES    RESPECTING    THE    ISRAELITES. 

prophecy  is  easily  shown  to  refer  to  his  descendants  as 
much  or  more  than  himself,  (see  Gen.  xvii.  20.)  and 
has  been  remarkably  fultllled  for  age  after  age  down  to 
the  present  time.  JStill  do  the  Arabians  retain  the  wild 
character  which  has  distinguished  them  for  above  3000 
years.  Miirhty  conquerors  and  nations  have  warred 
an-ainst  them,  but  never  fmally  subdued  them..  Those 
nations  are  vanished  away,  but  the  decendants  of  Ish- 
mael  still  exist  a  distinct  people,  dreaded  by  neighbour- 
ino-  nations  against  whom  their  hands  are  turned,  but 
still  unsubdued  and  independent. 

3.  Three  thousand  three  hundred  years  ago,  Moses, 
the  lawgiver  of  the  Jews,  declared  to  them,  that  if  they 
forsook  their  God,  after  an  enemy  from  a  distant  coun- 
try had  destroyed  their  cities,  and  heaped  numerous 
miseries  upon  them,  the  Lord  would  scatter  them 
amono-  all  people,  from  one  end  of  the  earth  even  to 
the  other ;  and  that  among  these  nations  they  should 
find  no  rest  for  the  sole  of  their  foot,  Deut.  xxviii.  64. 
For  nearly  1800  years  has  this  prophecy  been  receiv- 
ing a  dreadful  accomplishment.  Their  cities  were  des- 
troyed, their  temple  burnt,  their  country  seized,  and 
nearly  two  millions  of  them  slaughtered,  by  the  Ro- 
mans, in  the  reigns  of  Vespasian  and  Adrian.  Since 
that  period  they  have  been  scattered  through  the  w^orld, 
and  trodden  under  foot,  not  merely  in  professedly 
Christian  countries,  but  even  by  heathen  nations,  who 
are  unacquainted  with  the  crime  that  has  exposed  them 
to  the  wrath  of  Heaven.  Their  history  since  their  ex- 
pulsion from  Judea  is  little  else  than  a  detail  of  the  ex- 
tortion, op])ression,  and  persecution  which  they  have 
endured ;  and  of  their  exile  from  one  country  or  an- 
other, so  that  though  scattered  through  the  world,  they 
have  been  without  a  country  they  could  call  their  own. 
Considerably  above  2000  years  ago,  the  Lord  by  an- 


NINEVEH,    BABYLON,    AND    TYRE.  69 

other  prophet  declared,  "  I  will  make  a  full  end  of  all 
;he  nations  whither  I  have  driven  thee,  but  I  will  not 
make  a  full  end  of  thee,"  Jcr.  xlvi.  28.  Not  less  re- 
iuarkably  is  this  propliecy  fulfilling-  at  the  present  day. 
The  Assyrians,  the  Babylonians,  the  Romans,  and 
other  nations,  that  conquered  the  Jews,  are  blotted 
from  the  list  of  nations, — their  name  and  history  is  all 
that  remains  of  them ;  but  the  Jews,  oppressed,  de- 
spised, exiled,  trodden  in  the  dust,  still  continue  a  dis- 
tinct people,  mixed  with  almost  all  nations,  but  united 
to  none  :  they  exist  a  continued  miracle  ; — a  standing 
testimony  to  the  divinity  of  that  book,  which  records 
their  crimes,  and  foretells  their  sorrows,  their  disper- 
sion, and  yet  their  preservation. 

4.  The  scripture  prophecies  respecting  those  mighty 
cities,  that  w^ere  once  the  seats  of  empire,  or  the  prin- 
cipal scenes  of  commerce,  wealth,  and  grandeur,  de- 
serve attention.  Such  cities  were  Nineveh,  Babylon, 
and  Tyre.  The  two  former  the  capitals  of  powerful 
empires,  the  latter  that  city  whose  merchants  were 
princes.  Nahum  foretold  the  destruction  of  Nineveh ; 
and  Nineveh  has  long  since  been  swept  from  the  earth 
by  the  besom  of  destruction.  Isaiah  pronounced  the 
doom  of  Babylon,  and  threatened  with  ruin  that  proud 
and  haughty  city ;  a  heathen  has  recorded  the  fulfil- 
ment of  the  just,  divine  sentence.  Tyre,  once  their  rival 
ill  wealth,  has  partaken  of  their  fall,  and  shared  in  their 
ruin.  These  prophecies  are  rendered  more  remarkable 
in  consequence  of  the  scriptures  specifying  various  mi- 
nute circumstances  connected  with  their  dovv^ifall,  and 
yet  containing  no  account  of  the  fulfilment  of  the  prophe- 
cy, at  which  a  writer,  designing  to  recommend  himself 
to  notice  as  a  prophet,  would  at  least  have  glanced. 
From  other  writers  we  learn  their  fulfilment.  Diodo 
nis  Siculus,  a  heathen  historian,  states  that  Nineveh 


70  NINEVEH,    BABVLON,    AND    TYRE. 

was  sixty  miles  in  comptiss.  Nahum  foretold  tliat  tliis 
city  should  be  takemvhen  the  Assyrians  were  drunken, 
that  the  gates  of  the  river  sliould  ])e  opened,  and  the 
palace  be  dissolved,  Nahum  i.  10.  ii.  0.  Diodorus  states, 
that  the  Assyrian  camp  was  forced,  and  the  army  de- 
feated, when  drunkenness  and  negligence  prevailed ; 
that  the  river  broke  down  the  wall  for  twenty  fur- 
longs ;  and  that  then  the  king,  believing  ruin  at  hand, 
built  a  funeral  pile  in  his  palace,  and  consumed  to- 
gether, his  wealth,  his  concubines,  his  palace,  and 
himself.  Babylon  was  a  ci.ty  that  might  have  appeared 
to  defy  the  enmity  of  man.  Herodotus  states,  that  its 
walls  were  350  feet  high,  and  87  tliick,  that  it  had  a 
hundred  gates  of  solid  brass,  and  was  about  the  size 
of  Nineveh  ;  and  Berosus  adds,  that  some  of  its  build- 
ings appeared  almost  like  mountains.  It  had  stood  for 
many  centuries  when  Isaiah  foretold  its  destruction. 
He  prophesied  that  it  should  be  overthrown  by  Cyrus, 
and  the  Modes  and  Persians,  Isa.  xxi.  2,  xliv.  28,  xiv. 
1,  Jer.  ii.  11.  That  its  gates  should  not  be  shut,  Isa. 
xlv.  1.  That  its  waters  should  be  dried  up,  Isa.  xliv. 
27,  Jer.  1.  38.  That  it  should  be  taken  when  its  great 
men  were  drunken  at  a  feast,  Jer.  Ii.  39.  51. 57.  From 
the  historians  Xenophon  and  Herodotus  we  learn  that 
this  was  literally  accomplished.  The  Medes  and  Per- 
sians under  Cyrus  were  the  conquerors  of  Babylon. 
Its  gates  towards  the  Euphrates  were  left  open,  and 
he  took  the  city  by  turning  the  course  of  the  river, 
there  a  quarter  of  a  mile  wide,  and  then  entering  the 
neglected  gates  through  the  dried  channel,  on  a  night 
when  tlie  inha])itants,  in  consequence  of  an  annual  fes- 
tival, were  indulging  in  dancing,  revelling,  and  drink- 
ing. Isaiah  threatened  its  utter  destruction,  and  this 
has  been  so  fullilled  that  it  has  long  been  a  subject  of 
dispute  where  Babylon  stood.     Tyre  was  a  city  not 


PREDICTIONS    RESPECTING    CHRIST.  71 

less  memorable,  and  mentioned  as  a  strong  city  in  the 
book  of  Joshua.  Ezekiel  foretold  its  ruin,  and  various 
circumstances  connected  with  its  fate ;  and  ancient  his- 
tory records  the  fultilment  of  his  predictions.  Among 
other  circumstances  mentioned  in  those  predictions,  it 
is  said,  "I  will  make  thee  like  the  top  of  a  rock; 
thou  shalt  be  a  place  to  s})read  nets  upon  ;  thou  shalt 
be  built  no  more,"  Ezek.  xxvi.  14.  Mr.  Maundrel 
mentions  that  its  modern  inhabitants  are  a  few  poor 
creatures  who  have  been  born  hi  its  vaults,  and  subsist 
on  fishing;  and  a  person  who  resided  ten  years  in 
Syria  stated,  that,  upon  the  stones  scattered  up  and 
down  its  now  desolated  shore,  he  beheld  the  fisher- 
men's nets  spread  out  to  dry. 

5.  The  predictions  contained  in  the  Old  Testament 
respecting  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  deserve  the  devout 
attention  of  all  his  professed  disciples.  The  volume 
of  prophecy  was  unsealed  in  paradise,  when  the  first 
promise  of  a  Deliverer  was  given  to  man,  and  gradually 
opened,  displaying  more  and  more  of  the  excellences 
of  him  that  was  to  come.  The  accomplishment  of 
some  of  these  predictions  may  not,  however,  to  a  per- 
son who  doubts  the  divine  origin  of  Christianity,  appear 
so  conclusive  and  impressive,  as  that  of  others  that  may 
be  seen  fulfilled,  and  fulfilling  before  our  eyes.  To 
these,  therefore,  references  shall  here  be  principally 
made. 

Let  it  be  premised,  and  let  the  reader  keep  in  mind, 
that  the  Old  Testament,  in  which  the  predictions  now 
to  be  brought  forward  are  found,  is  a  completely  distinct 
volume  from  the  New.  It  is  handed  down  to  us  from 
a  different  source,  not  originally  from  the  disciples  of 
Jesus,  but  from  the  Jews,  his  inveterate  enemies.  It 
has  ever  been  in  their  keeping,  and  still  is  preserved 
by  them,  wherever  scattered,  as  the  book  of  God  ;  and 


72  PREDICTIONS    RESPECTING    CHRIST. 

preserved  with  a  scrupulosity,  that  lias  led  them  to 
number  the  words  and  even  the  letters  it  contains. 
No  one,  therefore,  unless  he  would  outdo  all  that  is 
most  absurd  in  absurdity,  can  hazard  the  assertion,  that 
the  j)redictionsof  that  book  were  forged  by  Christians, 
that  their  j)retendcd  accomplishment  might  give  a 
sanction  to  Christianity;  for  as  the  book  containing 
them  always  has  been  in  the  hands  of  the  enemies  of 
Christianity,  this  was  utterly  impossibh. 

The  Old  Testament  contains  predictions  that  at 
some  period  of  time  a  great  benefactor  to  the  human 
race  should  arise.  In  him  all  nations  were  sooner  or 
later  to  be  blessed. 

Among  the  predictions  announcing  this  event  are  the 
following.  God  said  to  Abraham,  "  In  thy  seed  shall 
all  the  nations  of  the  earth  be  blessed,"  Gen.  xxii.  18. 

"  My  covenant  will  I  establish  with  Isaac,^^  Gen. 
xvii.  21. 

To  Jacob  he  said,  "In  thee  and  in  thy  seed  shall 
all  the  families  of  the  earth  be  blessed,"  Gen.  xxviii.  14. 

Other  predictions  are — "The  sceptre  shall  not  de- 
part from  Judah — till  Shiloh  come,  and  unto  him  shall 
the  gathering  of  the  people  be,"  Gen.  xlix.  10. 

"There  shall  come  forth  a  rod  out  of  the  stem  of 
Jesse,  and  a  branch  shall  grow  out  of  his  roots,  and  the 
Spirit  of  the  Lord  shall  rest  upon  him,"  Isa.  xi.  1,  2. 

"  Behold  the  days  come,  saith  the  Lord,  that  I  will 
raise  unto  David  a  righteous  branch,  and  a  king  shall 
reign  and  prosper,  and  shall  execute  judgment  and 
justice  in  the  earth,"  Jer.  xxiii.  5. 

"Thou,  Bethleham  Ephratah,  though  thou  be  little 
among  the  thousands  of  Judah,  yet  out  of  thee  shall  He 
come  forth  luito  me  that  is  to  be  ruler  in  Israel ;  M'hose 
goings  forth  have  been  from  of  old,  from  everlasting," 
Mic.  V.  3. 


PREDICTIONS    RESPECTING    CHRIST.  73 

"He  shall  grow  up  before  him  as  a  tender  plant,  and 
as  a  root  out  of  a  dry  ground :  he  hath  no  form  nor 
comeliness ;  and  when  we  shall  see  him,  there  is  no 
beauty  that  we  should  desire  him,"  Isa.  liii.  2. 

"Behold  my  servant,  whom  I  upliold;  mine  elect, 
in  whom  my  soul  delighteth;  I  have  put  my  Spirit 
upon  him:  he  shall  bring  forth  judgment  to  the  Gen- 
tiles. He  shall  not  cry,  nor  lift  up,  nor  cause  his  voice 
to  be  heard  in  the  street.  A  bruised  reed  shall  he  not 
break,  and  the  smoking  flax  shall  he  not  quench;  he 
shall  bring  forth  judgment  unto  truth,"  Isa.  xlii.  1 — 3. 

"  Then  the  eyes  of  the  blind  shall  be  opened,  and 
the  ears  of  the  deaf  shall  be  unstopped.  Then  shall 
the  lame  man  leap  as  an  hart,  and  the  tongue  of  the 
dumb  sing :  for  in  the  wilderness  shall  waters  break  out, 
and  streams  in  the  desert,"  Isa.  xxxv.  5,  6. 

"  He  is  despised  and  rejected  of  men  ;  a  man  of  sor- 
rows and  acquainted  with  grief:  and  we  hid  as  it  were 
our  faces  from  him ;  he  was  despised,  and  we  esteemed 
him  not.  Surely  he  hath  borne  our  griefs,  and  carried 
our  sorrows :  yet  we  did  esteem  him  stricken,  smitten 
of  God,  and  afflicted,"  Isa.  hii.  3,  4. 

"  He  hath  poured  out  his  soul  unto  death :  and  he 
was  numbered  with  the  transgressors ;  and  he  bare  the 
sin  of  many,  and  made  intercession  for  the  transgres- 
sors," Isa.  liii.  12. 

''  He  was  oppressed,  and  he  was  afilicted,  yet  he 
opened  not  his  mouth :  he  is  brought  as  a  lamb  to  the 
slaughter,  and  as  a  sheep  before  her  shearers  is  dumb, 
so  he  openeth  not  his  mouth,"  Isa.  liii.  7. 

"  And  he  made  his  grave  with  the  wicked,  and  with 
the  rich  in  his  death ;  because  he  had  done  no  violence, 
neither  was  any  deceit  in  his  mouth,"  Isa.  liii.  9. 

"The  desire  of  all  nations  shall  come,  and  I  will  fill 
this  house  with  glory,  saith  the  Lord,"  Hag.  ii.  7. 
7 


74  PREDICTIONS    RESPECTING    CHRIST. 

"Seventy  weeks  arc  determined  upon  thy  people,  and 
upon  thy  holy  city,  to  finish  the  transgression,  and  to 
make  an  end  of  sins,  and  to  make  reconcihation  for  in- 
i(|uity,  and  to  hring  in  everlasting  righteousness,  and 
to  seal  up  the  vision  and  prophecy,  and  to  anoint  the 
most  Holy.  And  after  threescore  and  two  weeks  shall 
Messiah  he  cut  off,  but  not  for  himself,"  Dan.  ix.  24.  26. 

Thus  it  was  foretold,  that  the  promised  benefactor 
of  the  human  race  should  be  a  descendant  of  Abra- 
ham, of  Isaac,  of  Jacob,  of  Judah,  of  Jesse,  of  David 
— that  he  should  be  born  at  Bethlehem ;  that  he  should 
rise  in  the  midst  of  poverty  and  depression  ;  that  he 
should  be  distinguished  by  meekness  and  gentleness  ; 
should  perform  the  most  illustrious  miracles  ;  should 
be  rejected  by  those  he  attempted  to  benefit ;  should 
intercede  for  transgressors  ;  should  without  complain- 
ing be  put  to  death ;  should  make  his  grave  with  the 
rich ;  and  should  appear  while  the  second  temple  stood, 
and  before  Daniel's  seventy  weeks  expired.  However 
the  enemies  of  Jesus  may  account  for  the  fact,  they 
cannot  disprove  that  all  these  particulars  met  in  him. 
Tacitus,  Suetonius,  and  Josephus  record,  that  about 
the  time  of  his  coming,  some  great  personage  was  ex- 
pected to  arise  in  the  East.  The  genealogy  of  the 
Lord's  human  ancestors,  tracing  his  descent  to  David, 
to  Jesse,  to  Judah,  to  Jacob,  to  Isaac,  to  Abraham, 
was  published  by  his  disciples  among  their  foes ;  if 
incorrect  why  did  not  the  Jews  who  crucified  him  dis- 
prove it,  when  their  genealogies  existed,  and  they  had 
every  opportunity  for  detecting  falsehood?  His  birth 
at  Bethlehem  was  a  notorious  fact ;  that  he  was  poor 
and  despised  none  denied ;  it  was  the  subject  of  their 
reproach.  If  he  were  not,  as  his  friends  declare,  dis- 
tinguished for  meekness  and  gentleness,  why  did  not 
his  enemies  detect  a  falsehood  respecting  him  ?    That 


PREDICTIONS    RESPECTING    CHRIST.  75 

he  performed  the  most  illustrious  miracles  has  been 
already  evinced;  that  he  was  rejected  needs  no  proof. 
The  other  circumstances  connected  with  his  death  were 
of  so  public  a  nature,  that  if  the  narration  of  his  disci- 
ples had  been  incorrect,  his  enemies  might  immedi- 
ately have  exposed  their  false  representation.  He  ap- 
peared while  that  which  Joscphus  expressly  represents 
as  the  second  temple  stood  ;  and  at  whatever  year 
Daniel's  seventy  weeks  of  years,  (or  490  years,)  may 
be  reckoned  to  commence,  he  came  before  that  period 
had  expired.  Look  through  all  history,  and  see  if  it 
be  possible  to  fix  on  another  person  in  whom  these 
predictions,  which  are  but  a  few'  out  of  the  many  that 
refer  to  the  Messiah,  meet.  It  is  impossible  to  find 
one.  How  then  could  they  meet  in  him  but  because 
he  was  the  person  to  whom  they  pointed?  Whatever 
human  sagacity  may  do,  it  cannot  with  certainty  fore- 
tell one  future  event,  much  less  can  it  trace,  through 
successive  generations,  the  descent  of  an  individual, 
not  to  be  born  for  many  ages ;  describe  his  character, 
and  point  to  a  number  of  circumstances  in  his  life. 
Yet  this  is  done,  in  the  Old  Testament,  respecting 
some  distinguished  individual ;  and  there  is  abundant 
evidence  that  Jesus  Christ  is  that  individual,  and  thus 
is  the  Son  of  God. 

6.  The  prophecies  respecting  the  reign  of  that  great 
Benefactor,  of  whom  the  Old  Testament  makes  such 
frequent  mention,  and  who  is  denominated  the  Mes- 
siah, are  not  less  remarkable,  than  those  which  refer 
to  his  person ;  and  have  this  peculiarity  that  the  accom- 
plishment of  them  is  evident  before  our  eyes.  This  no 
sophistry  can  confute,  no  effrontery  disprove. 

The  Jews,  it  is  well  known,  v.'ere  a  nation  peculiarly 
distinct  from  other  nations.  They  were  influenced  by 
a  spirit  entirely  sectarian.    Otlier  nations  des])ised  them, 


76  rOXVERSIOiN    OF    THE    GEx\TILES. 

and  tlicy  on  their  part,  clcsjHscd  other  nations,  looked 
on  them  as  common,  and  unclean,  and  on  themselves 
as  tlie  peculiar  people  of  the  God  of  heaven.  Yet 
when  the  whole  world,  excepting  Judea,  lay  sunk  in 
idolatry,  when  Greece  and  Rome,  with  all  their  refine- 
ments, were  worshipping  their  thousand  idols,  or  even 
before  Grecian  and  Roman  grandeur  and  civilization 
existed,  Jewish  prophets  foretold  that  other  nations 
would  forsake  their  idols ;  would  become  the  worship- 
pers of  the  God  the  Jews  adored ;  Avould  be  gathered 
into  his  fold ;  and  that  his  fold  among  them  would  be 
more  extensive,  and  more  favoured  than  ever  was  that 
of  the  Jewish  nation.  The  predictions  are  in  the  hands 
of  the  Jews  ;  the  accomplishment  is  not  mere  matter 
of  history — it  is  before  you  :  read  the  predictions. 

"  In  the  last  days  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  the 
mountain  of  the  house  of  the  Lord  shall  be  established 
in  the  top  of  the  mountains,  and  it  shall  be  exalted 
above  the  hills  ;  and  people  shall  flow  unto  it.  And 
many  nations  shall  come,  and  say.  Come,  and  let  us 
go  up  to  the  mountain  of  the  Lord,  and  to  the  house 
of  the  God  of  Jacob  ;  and  he  will  teach  us  of  his  ways, 
and  we  will  walk  in  his  paths,"  Mic.  iv.  1,  2. 

"Zion  said.  The  Lord  hath  forsaken  me,  and  my 
Lord  hath  forgotten  me.  Can  a  woman  forget  her 
sucking  child,  that  she  should  not  have  compassion  on 
tlie  son  of  her  womb  ?  yea,  they  may  forget,  yet  will 
I  not  forget  thee.  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God,  Behold, 
I  will  lift  up  mine  hand  to  the  Gentiles,  and  set  up  my 
standard  to  the  people :  and  they  shall  bring  thy  sons 
in  their  arms,  and  thy  daughters  shall  be'  carried  upon 
their  shoulders,"  Isa.  xlix.  14,  15,  22. 

"  Behold,  thou  shalt  call  a  nation  that  thou  knowest 
not,  and  nations  that  knew  not  thee  shall  run  unto  thee 


CONVERSION    OF    THE    GENTILES.  77 

because  of  tlie  Lord  tliy  God,  and  for  ihc  Holy  One  of 
Israel ;  for  he  hath  glorified  thee,"  Isq,.  Iv.  5. 

"  Hearken  unto  me,  my  people  ;  and  give  ear  unto 
me,  O  my  nation :  for  a  law  shall  proceed  from  me, 
and  I  will  make  my  judgment  to  rest  for  a  light  of  the 
people,"  Isa.  li.  4. 

"Arise,  shine  ;  for  thy  light  is  come,  and  the  glory 
of  the  Lord  is  risen  upon  thee.  For,  behold,  the 
darkness  shall  cover  the  earth,  and  gross  darkness 
the  people  :  but  the  Lord  shall  arise  upon  thee,  and 
his  glory  shall  be  seen  upon  thee.  And  the  Gentiles 
shall  come  to  thy  light,  and  kings  to  the  brightness  of 
thy  rising.  Lift  up  thine  eyes  round  about,  and  see : 
all  they  gather  themselves  together,  they  come  to  thee : 
thy  sons  shall  come  from  for,  and  thy  daughters  shall 
be  nursed  at  thy  side.  Then  thou  shalt  see,  and  flow 
together,  and  thine  heart  shall  fear  and  be  enlarged  ; 
because  the  abundance  *of  the  sea  shall  be  converted 
unto  thee,  the  forces  of  the  Gentiles  shall  come  unto 
thee,"  Isa.  Ix.  1—5. 

"  I  am  sought  of  them  that  asked  not  for  me  ;  I  am 
found  of  them  that  sought  me  not:  I  said.  Behold  me, 
beliold  me,  unto  a  nation  that  was  not  called  by  my 
name,"  Isa.  Ixv.  1. 

"O  Lord,  my  strength,  and  my  fortress,  and  my 
refuge  in  the  day  of  affliction,  the  Gentiles  shall  come 
unto  thee  from  the  ends  of  the  earth,  and  shall  say,. 
Surely  our  fathers  have  inherited  lies,  vanity,  and  things 
wherein  there  is  no  profit,"  Jer.  xvi.  19. 

"  I  will  have  mercy  upon  her  that  had  not  obtained 
mercy ;  and  I  will  say  to  tliem  which  were  not  my 
people.  Thou  art  my  people ;  and  they  shall  say.  Thou 
art  my  God,"  Hos.  ii.  23. 

"  Many  nations  shall  be  joined  to  the  Lord,"  Zech. 
ii.  11. 

7* 


78  SUBJECTION    TO    CHRIST. 

*'  From  the  rising  of  tlie  sun  even  unto  the  going 
down  of  tlie  same,  my  name  sliall  be  great  among  the 
Gentiles ;  and  in  every  i)lace  incense  shall  be  offered 
unto  my  name,  and  a  pure  offering:  for  my  name  shall 
be  great  among  the  heathen,  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts," 
Mai.  i.  11. 

"  Sing,  O  barren,  thou  that  didst  not  bear  break  forth 
into  singing,  and  cry  aloud,  thou  that  didst  not  travail 
with  child  :  for  more  are  the  children  of  the  desolate 
than  the  children  of  the  married  wife,  saith  the  Lord. 
Enlarge  the  place  of  thy  tent,  and  let  them  stretch  forth 
the  curtains  of  thine  habitations :  spare  not,  lengthen 
thy  cords,  and  strengthen  thy  stakes ;  for  thou  shalt 
break  forth  on  the  right  hand  and  on  the  left ;  and  thy 
seed  shall  inherit  the  Gentiles,  and  make  the  desolate 
cities  to  be  inhabited,"  Isa.  liv.  1 — 3. 

Behold  before  you  the  accomplishment  of  these  pre- 
dictions. Look  at  Europe  ;  its  systems  of  idolatry  have 
long  since  passed  away;  its  idols  are  forgotten.  Mil- 
lions, indeed,  are  careless  of  all  religion,  but  by  mil- 
lions the  Bible  is  revered ;  the  book  that  instructed 
the  Jews  three  thousand  years  ago,  instructs  them  ; 
and  the  God  that  was  adored  by  the  prophet  who  ut- 
tered the  predictions,  is  the  God  they  worship.  Look 
at  their  numbers,  how  much  more  numerous  are  the 
Gentiles  who  have  renounced  idolatry  and  worship  God, 
than  the  dccendants  of  Abraham  evei-  were ! 

7.  As  it  was  predicted  that  the  Gentiles  would 
become  worshippers  of  God,  so  it  was  also  predicted 
that  they  would  become  the  subjects  of  the  promised 
Messiah.  This  was  an  additional  event.  Idolatry  might 
have  been  renounced  without  Christianity  being  em- 
braced ;  but  Christ  was  to  be  their  Hght,  or  to  com- 
municate to  them  the  knowledge  of  sacred  truth ;  that 
light  was  to  spring  up  in  Jerusalem,  and  thence  to  be 


SUBJECTION    TO    CHRIST.  79 

diffusetl  to  other  lands.  To  the  promised  Dehvercr, 
it  was  also  foretold,  the  Gentiles  would  seek,  and  to 
him  submit.  Among  many  predictions  on  these  sub- 
jects are  the  following :  "  Yet  have  I  set  my  king 
upon  my  holy  hill  of  Zion.  Ask  of  me,  and  I  shall 
give  thee  the  heathen  for  thine  inheritance,  and  the  ut- 
termost parts  of  the  earth  for  thy  possession,"  Psa. 
ii.  C.  8.  "  Behold  my  servant,  Avhom  I  uphold  ;  mine 
elect,  in  whom  my  soul  delighteth ;  I  have  put  my 
spirit  upon  him  ;  he  shall  bring  forth  judgment  to  the 
Gentiles.  I  the  Lord  have  called  thee  in  righteousness, 
and  I  will  hold  thine  hand,  and  will  keep  thee,  and  give 
thee  for  a  covenant  of  the  people,  for  a  light  of  the 
Gentiles,"  Isa.  xlii.  1.  6.  "It  is  a  light  thing  that  thou 
shouldest  be  my  servant  to  raise  up  the  tribes  of  Jacob, 
and  to  restore  the  preserved  of  Isreal :  I  will  also  give 
thee  for  a  light  to  the  Gentiles,  that  thou  mayest  be 
my  salvation  unto  the  end  of  the  earth,"  Isa.  xlix.  6. 
"  Behold  I  have  given  him  for  a  witness  to  the  people, 
a  leader  and  commander  to  the  people,"  Isa.  Iv.  4. 
"  And  in  that  day  there  shall  be  a  root  of  Jesse,  which 
shall  stand  for  an  ensign  of  the  people ;  to  it  shall  the 
Gentiles  seek :  and  his  rest  shall  be  glorious,"  Isa.  xi. 
10.  "  Out  of  Zion  shall  go  forth  the  law,  and  the 
word  of  the  Lord  from  Jerusalem.  And  he  shall  judge 
among  the  nations,  and  shall  rebuke  many  people," 
Isa.  ii.  3.  4.  "  Thus  speaketh  the  Lord  of  hosts,  say- 
ing. Behold  the  man  whose  name  is  the  Branch ;  and 
he  shall  grow  up  out  of  his  place,  and  he  shall  build 
the  temple  of  the  Lord  :  even  he  shall  build  the  tem- 
ple of  the  Lord  ;  and  he  shall  bear  the  glory,  and 
shall  sit  and  rule  upon  his  throne  ;  and  he  shall  be  a 
priest  upon  his  throne  ;  and  the  counsel  of  peace  shall 
be  between  them  both,"  Zech.  vi.  12,  13.  "I  saw  ia 
the  night  visions,  and,  behold,  one  like  the  Son  of  man 


80  SUBJECTION    TO    CHRIST. 

ramo  witli  tlie  clourlr'  of  Heavon,  and  came  to  the  An- 
cient ofdays,  and  tliey  brought  liim  near  before  him. 
And  tlierc  was  «i^iven  him  dominion,  and  glory,  and  a 
kingdom,  tliat  all  people,  nations,  and  languages  should 
serve  him:  his  dominion  is  an  everlasting  dominion, 
which  shall  not  pass  away,  and  his  kingdom  that  which 
shall  not  be  destroyed,"  Dan.  vii.  13,  14. 

Whether  you  love  or  reject  Christianity,  can  you 
possibly  deny  the  accomphshment  of  these  predictions  ? 
The  accomplishment  is  full  and  clear  as  the  light  of 
day.  It  comes  to  a  matter-of-fact  question,  Have  the 
events  foretold  taken  place  or  have  they  not  ?  Have 
the  idolatrous  systems  that  once  governed  Europe,  and 
some  other  lands,  vanished  away?  They  have.  This 
none  deny.  What  exterminated  them  ?  Science,  phi- 
losophy ?  No,  not  in  a  single  village.  It  was  the  light 
of  Christianity  fulfilling  the  prediction,  "I  have  set 
Thee  for  a  light  to  the  Gentiles."  Where  did  the  light 
of  Christianity  arise  ?  Not  at  Rome,  not  at  Athens,  the 
seats  of  ancient  refinement  and  science ;  but,  as  pro- 
phecy predicted,  at  Jerusalem.  To  whom  have  the 
nations,  that  have  thus  been  brought  to  worship  the 
God  of  heaven,  instead  of  the  idols  of  their  ancestors, 
sought?  To  whom  have  they  professed  subjection? 
and  though,  alas,  with  respect  to  multitudes,  that  pro- 
fession has  been  mere  profession,  yet  to  whom  have 
the  truly  devout  in  those  various  nations  actually  yield- 
ed the  subjection  of  the  heart?  To  Jesus  Christ.  They 
have  professed  his  religion,  they  have  borne  his  name, 
they  have  submitted  to  his  laws.  Millions  have  suf- 
fered every  extremity  of  affliction  rather  than  renounce 
allegiance  to  him  ;  and  millions  more  have,  doubtless, 
been  actuated  by  the  same  spirit,  though  not  actually 
summoned  to  the  same  sufferings. 

8.  The   great   Benefactor,  whose   appearance   the 


BLESSINGS    OF    HIS    REIGX.  81 

prophets  predicted,  was  to  be  a  blest^ng  to  the  nations. 
This  is  expressed  at  times  in  plain  words,  and  at  other 
times  by  the  most  glowing  poetical  images.  "In  thy 
seed  shall  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  be  blessed,"  Gen. 
xxii.  18.  "  Men  shall  be  blessed  in  him,  all  nations 
shall  call  him  blessed,"  Psa.  Ixxii.  17.  "  The  wilder- 
ness and  the  solitary  place  shall  be  glad  for  them ;  and 
the  desert  shall  rejoice,  and  blossom  as  the  rose.  It 
shall  blossom  abundantly,  and  rejoice  even  with  joy  and 
singing :  the  glory  of  Lebanon  shall  be  given  unto  it, 
the  excellency  of  Carmel  and  Sharon,  they  shall  see 
the  glory  of  the  Lord,  and  the  excellency  of  our  God," 
Isa.  xxxv.  1,  2.  "The  wolf  also  shall  dwell  with  the 
lamb,  and  the  leopard  shall  lie  down  with  tlie  kid  ;  and 
the  calf  and  the  young  lion  and  the  fatling  together ; 
and  a  little  child  shall  lead  them.  And  the  cow  and  the 
bear  shall  feed ;  their  young  ones  shall  lie  down  togeth- 
er ;  and  the  lion  shall  eat  straw  like  the  ox.  And  the 
sucking  child  shall  play  on  the  hole  of  the  asp,  and  the 
weaned  child  shall  put  his  hand  on  the  cockatrice'  den. 
They  shall  not  hurt  nor  destroy  in  all  my  holy  moun- 
tain :  for  the  earth  shall  be  full  of  the  knowledge  of 
the  Lord,  as  the  waters  cover  the  sea,"  Isa.  xi.  6 — 9. 
"  For  the  Lord  shall  comfort  Zion  :  he  will  comfort 
all  her  waste  places  ;  and  he  will  make  her  wilderness 
like  Eden,  and  her  desert  like  the  garden  of  the  Lord; 
joy  and  gladness  shall  be  found  therein,  thanksgiving, 
and  the  voice  of  melody,"  Isa.  li.  3.  "And  he  shall 
judge  among  the  nations,  and  shall  rebuke  many  peo- 
ple ;  and  they  shall  beat  their  swords  into  plough- 
shares, and  their  spears  into  pruning-hooks  :  nation 
shall  not  lift  up  sword  against  nation,  neither  shall  they 
learn  war  any  more,"  Isa.  ii.  4.  The  reader  may 
further  peruse  all  the  sixtieth  chapter  of  Isaiah. 

The  Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  his  relijrion  has  been  a 


83  BLESSINGS    OF    IIIS    REIGX. 

blessing  to  the  nations.  The  enh^rhtened  Christian  ^vill 
ever  esteem  tlie  spiritual  good  whicli  the  gospel  com- 
municates as  its  most  important  good  ;  yet,  independent 
of  that,  the  religion  of  the  Lord  Jesus  has  been  a  bless- 
ing to  mankind.  Paley  remarks,  with  not  more  per- 
spicuity than  truth,  "The  effects  of  Christianity  have 
been  important.  It  has  mitigated  the  conduct  of  war, 
and  the  treatment  of  captives.  It  has  softened  the  ad- 
ministration of  despotic  or  of  nominally  despotic  gov- 
ernments. It  has  abolished  polygamy.  It  has  re- 
strained the  licentiousness  of  divorces.  It  has  put  an 
end  to  the  exposure  of  children,  and  the  immolation  of 
slaves.  It  has  suppressed  the  combats  of  gladiators,*^ 
and  the  impurities  of  religious  rites.  It  has  banished 
if  not  unnatural  vices,  at  least  the  toleration  of  them. 
It  has  greatly  meliorated  the  condition  of  the  laborious 
part,  that  is  to  say,  of  the  mass  of  every  community, 
by  procuring  for  them  a  day  of  weekly  rest.  In  all 
countries  in  which  it  is  professed,  it  has  produced  nu- 
merous establishments  for  the  relief  of  sickness  and 
poverty ;  and  in  some  a  regular  and  general  provision 
by  law.  It  has  triumphed  over  the  slavery  established 
in  the  Roman  empire :  it  is  contending,  and,  I  trust, 
will  one  day  prevail  against  the  worse  slavery  of  the 
West  Indies." 

Had  any  distinguished  patriot  effected  all  this,  how 
would  he  have  been  held  up  to  universal  admiration 
as  the  greatest  benefactor  of  mankind  !  All  this  Chris- 
tianity has  done ;  yet  this  is  but  a  small  part  of  what  it 
has  effected.  Its  best  effects  are  visible  in  the  holi- 
ness and  happiness  diffused  among  many  in  the  retired 
scenes  of  private  life ;  in  the  peace  that  cheers  thou- 
sands of  chambers  of  affliction,  and  the  hope  that  ani- 

*  Lipsius  affirms  that  these  shows  sometimes  cost  20,000  or  30,000  lives  io  a 
month ;  arid  women  as  well  as  meu  were  passionately  fond  ol'  them. 


PERMANENCY    OF    CIIRIST's    KINGDOM.  83 

mates  myriads  Avhcn  sinkin (r  into  the  grave.  It  is  freely 
acknowledged  that  tlic  7rAr;/t' language  of  prophecy,  on 
the  blessings  of  Christ's  reign,  has  not  rjet  been  accom- 
plished ;  but  then  it  is  to  be  recollected,  the  full  accom- 
plishment is  represented  as  taking  place  when  the 
knowledge  of  the  Lord  shall  cover  the  earth  as  the 
waters  cover  the  sea;  then,  and  not  till  then,  may  be 
expected  the  complete  fulfilment  of  the  prophecies  re- 
specting Messiah's  reign.  To  expect  that  the  world 
should  enjoy  all  the  blessings  of  his  reign  while  but  a 
part  of  that  world  is  subjected  to  his  sway,  would  be 
as  absurd  as  to  expect  a  harvest  from  the  whole  of  a 
field  of  which  but  a  part  was  cultivated. 

9.  The  prophets  of  the  Old  Testament  also  predicted, 
that  the  kingdom  which  was  thus  to  be  establislied  un- 
der Him  whom  they  represented  as  the  great  hope  and 
deliverer  of  the  human  race,  was  to  be  an  everlasting 
kingdom.  The  period  of  time  in  which  it  was  to  com- 
mence was  marked  out ;  that  mere  human  power  was 
not  to  establish  it,  was  distinctly  asserted ;  and  that  its 
duration  was  to  be  for  ever.  "In  the  days  of  those 
kings  (the  Roman  empire)  shall  the  God  of  Heaven  set 
up  a  kingdom  which  shall  never  be  destroyed;  and  it 
shall  stand  for  ever,"  Dan.  ii.  44.  The  stone  mentioned 
in  verse  34,  which  represents  this  kingdom,  is  described 
as  cut  out  Avithout  hands,  that  is,  established  by  divine 
not  human  power,  as  the  phrase  "not  made  with  hands" 
is  used  2  Cor.  v.  1.  "Unto  us  a  child  is  born,  unto  us 
a  son  is  given :  and  the  government  shall  be  upon  his 
shoulder:  and  his  name  shall  be  called  Wonderful, 
Counseller,  The  mighty  God,  The  everlasting  Father, 
The  Prince  of  Peace.  Of  the  increase  of  his  govern- 
ment and  peace  there  shall  be  no  end,  upon  the  throne 
of  David,  and  upon  his  kingdom  to  order  it,  and  to  es- 
tablish it  with  judgment  and  with  justice,  from  hence- 


84  PERMANENCY    OF    CHRIST's    KINGDOM. 

forth  even  for  ever.  The  zeal  of  the  Lord  of  hosts  will 
perform  tliis,"  Isa.  ix.  (3,  7.  "  His  dominion  is  an  ever- 
lasun;^  dominion,  which  shall  not  pass  away,  and  his 
kingdom  that  whicli  shall  not  be  destroyed,"  Dan.  vii. 
14.  "  His  seed  shall  endure  for  ever,  and  his  thront 
as  the  sun  before  me.  It  shall  be  established  for  ever 
as  tlie  moon,  and  as  a  faithful  witness  in  Heaven,"  Psa. 
Ixxxix.  36,  37.  "  His  name  shall  endure  for  ever ;  his 
name  shall  be  continued  as  long  as  the  sun :  and  men 
shall  be  blessed  in  him  :  all  nations  shall  call  him  bless- 
ed," Psa.  Ixxii.  17.  "  In  a  little  wrath  I  hid  my  face 
from  thee  for  a  moment;  but  with  everlasting  kind- 
ness will  I  have  mercy  on  thee,  saith  the  Lord  thy  Re- 
deemer. For  the  mountains  shall  depart,  and  the  hills 
be  removed;  but  my  kindness  shall  not  depart  from 
thee,  neither  shall  the  covenant  of  my  peace  be  remov- 
ed, saith  the  Lord  that  hath  mercy  on  thee.  No  wea- 
pon that  is  formed  against  thee  shall  prosper ;  and 
every  tongue  that  shall  rise  against  thee  in  judgment 
thou  shalt  condemn.  This  Is  the  heritage  of  the  ser- 
vants of  the  Lord,  and  their  righteousness  is  of  me, 
saith  the  Lord,"  Isa.  liv.  8.  10.  17. 

In  the  establishment  and  preservation  of  Christianity 
we  see  all  this  fulfilled.  During  the  time  of  the  fourth 
great  empire,  or  of  the  Roman  power,  this  kingdom 
arose.  It  was  not  established  by  human  power ;  the 
power  and  riches  of  the  world  were  long  united  for  its 
destruction.  Nor  was  it  raised  by  the  science  or  wealth 
of  its  first  members.  The  unlettered  fishermen  of  Gal- 
lilee  had  neither  wealth  nor  science.  But  God  declared 
he  would  set  up  the  kingdom,  and  by  miracles  and 
miraculous  gifts,  and  displays  of  divine  power,  he  ac- 
complished his  promise.  For  eighteen  hundred 
years  has  Christianity  existed.  You  see  it  before 
you,  a  standiiTg  monument  of  the  truth  of  the  prophe- 


PERMANENCY    OF    CHRIST  S    KINGDOM.  85 

cies,  which  declared  its  rise  and  itsimpcri^liable  nature. 
Tiie  spiritual  kingdom  of  Christ  exists  and  flourishes, 
notwithstanding  all  the  exertions  that,  through  succes- 
sive ages,  thousands  of  enemies  have  employed  to  ef- 
fect its  subversion.  For  three  hundred  years  it  was 
exposed  to  the  assaults  of  heathen  persecutors,  yet 
])rospered  in  tlie  midst  of  opposition,  till  heathenism 
itself  fell  before  its  power.  For  many  hundred  years 
more,  the  superstitions  and  persecutions  of  the  Romish 
antichrist  aimed  at  Christianity  a  more  deadly  wound, 
but,  though  depressed,  the  kingdom,  the  church  of 
Christ,  still  existed.  In  later  times,  Infidelity  has  as- 
saulted Christianity  with  unremitting  hostility,  and  em- 
ployed every  art  and  every  weapon  for  its  destruction, 
till  at  one  time,  as  is  well  known,  French  infidels  an- 
ticipated a  final  conquest.  And  does  Christianity  now 
seem  less  likely  to  preA^ail  than  in  ages  past?  Does 
the  kingdom  of  Christ  seem  tottering  to  decay  ?  Let 
facts  answer.  Look  at  North  America.  Behold  among 
its  energetic  population,  millions  binding  the  Gospel  to 
their  hearts,  and  intent  on  the  enlargement  of  Christ's 
spiritual  kingdom.  Look  at  Britian,  and  though  there 
is  much  of  merely  nominal  Christianity  here,  yet,  be- 
hold a  multitude,  which  no  man  can  number,  to  whom 
Christianity  is  dearer  than  any  earthly  good,  and  who 
are  labouring  to  promote  its  reign,  not  merely  in  their 
own  country,  but  to  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth. 
Look  at  Europe,  and  see  not  merely  many  dev^oted  to 
Christ,  but  see  Bible  societies  spreading  the  Christian 
Scriptures  over  various  parts  of  the  continent,  and 
even  diffusing  them  from  houses  or  from  cities  where 
infidelity  once  held  its  reign,  and  feared  no  overthrow. 
Look  at  the  efforts  now  making  to  spread  Christianity 
througli  the  world,  so  that  missionaries,  bibles,  and 
tracts  are  gone,  or  going,  to  almost  every  nation ;  while, 
8 


86  REMARKS    ON    THE    PREDICTIONS. 

probably,  not  less  than  live  hundred  thousand  pounds 
are  annually  expended  in  these  sacred  enterprises. — 
Let  all  this  answer  the  question,  Is  Christianity  losing 
or  jTiiining  ground? 

10.  The  question  now  is,  not  whether  these  things 
are  right  or  wrong,  though  among  Christians,  on  that 
subject,  there  can  be  but  one  opinion,  but  it  is.  Arc 
these  things  facts?  facts  visible  to  every  eye? — If  they 
are,  in  tliis  is  prophecy  accomplished  before  our  view; 
and  predictions,  uttered  more  than  two  thousand  years 
ago,  are  ful filled  in  our  sight.  Whether  you  approve 
of  Christianity  or  dislike  it,  the  appeal  now  is  to  matter 
of  fact.  It  is  a  fact  that  the  Jewish  prophets  did  fore- 
tell the  advent  of  some  extraordinary  person,  who  was 
to  be  an  eminent  benefactor  to  mankind.  The  Jews, 
the  enemies  of  Christ,  are  our  witnesses  to  this.  It  is 
an  equally  indisputable  foct,  that  at  the  time  expected, 
Jesus  Christ  professed  to  be  that  person ;  and  that  many 
circumstances  connected  with  him  exactly  agreed  with 
those  predictions.  It  is  a  fact,  that  the  Jewish  prophets 
predicted  the  conversion  of  Gentile  nations  from  idol- 
atry to  the  worship  of  the  one  living  and  true  God. 
It  is  equally  a  fact,  that  that  event  has  taken  place.  It 
is  a  fact  that  those  Jewish  prophets  also  predicted,  that 
the  nations  thus  converted  frmn  idolatry,  would  be  so, 
through  the  religion  of  the  great  Deliverer,  of  whom 
they  spoke ;  and  that  those  nations  would  avow  sub- 
jection to  him.  It  is  equally  a  fact,  that  it  is  Chris- 
tianity which  subverted  Grecian  and  Roman  idolatry, 
and  that  the  nations  rescued  from  such  superstition, 
have  avowed  themselves  the  subjects  of  Christ.  It  is 
a  fact  that  the  prophets  foretold,  that  his  kingdom  once 
established,  should  never  be  destroyed,  and  it  is  an 
equally  olnious  fact,  that  in  spite  of  every  effort  used 
for  its  subversion,  Christianity  exists ;  that  multitudes 


REMARKS     ON    THE    PREDICTIOx\S.  87 

glory  in  it ;  bow  to  Christ  in  willing  snbjcciion,  and 
yield  to  him  the  homaoe  of  adoring;  and  devoted  hearts. 
These  are  foots,  which  cannot,  with  any  appearance  of 
reason  be  denied.  How,  tlien,  were  all  these  facts 
foretold,  some  of  them  nuicli  more  tlian  three  tliousand 
years  ago,  all  of  tliem  considerably  more  than  two 
thousand ;  how,  except  from  the  inspiration  of  that 
God,  to  whom  Christianity  directs  the  soul?  Nothing 
parallel  to  this,  excepting  in  other  prophecies  of  the 
Bible,  is  to  be  found  in  the  history  of  the  human  race. 
We  possess  many  ancient  writings,  whose  authors  have 
long  been  held  in  high  esteem,  but  these  writings  con- 
tain no  predictions  of  events  to  take  place  thousands 
of  years  after  the  writer's  death.  We  behold  many 
events  of  considerable  importance  taking  place,  amidst 
the  agitations  of  this  world,  but  we  can  look  to  no  an- 
cient record,  and  say,  These  momentous  events  are 
here  foretold.  Only  where  the  kingdom,  the  cause, 
and  the  Book  of  God  are  concerned,  can  we  find  such 
predictions  uttered,  and  thus  trace  their  fulfilment. 

Should  an  unbeliever  say.  These  predictions  were 
but  lucky  conjectures  of  the  prophets;  the  supposition 
is  entirely  absurd.  Previous  to  the  coming  of  Christ, 
not  one  instance  can  be  pointed  out  in  which  an  idola- 
trous nation  had  voluntarily  renounced  idolatry.  Na- 
tion after  nation  had  been  sinking  deeper  and  deeper 
in  that  foolish  superstition,  but  none  forsaking  its 
abominations.  There  was  nothing,  therefore,  in  all 
history,  or  in  the  whole  appearance  of  the  world  to 
lead  a  prophet  to  suspect,  that  many  nations  would 
forsake  idolatry.  But  if  a  conjecture  of  this  khid  had 
been  ventured  as  a  prediction,  yet  to  point  out  that 
this  renunciation  of  idolatry  should  take  place,  in  con- 
nection with  the  authority  and  instructions  of  an  indi- 
vidual, not  to  be  born  for  many  ages  ;  that  this  indi- 


68  PREDICTIONS    OF    THE    LORD    JESUS. 

viJual  slioukl  be  a  blessing  to  the  nations ;  and  that 
liis  dominion  once  estabUshed  should  defy  every  effort 
to  effect  its  subversion,  was  indeed  an  utter  impossi- 
bility. A  sensible  writer  has  drawn  out  various  opin- 
ions of  deists  in  what  he  describes  as  the  deist's  creed, 
of  Avliich  the  conclusion  is,  "Finally  I  believe  in  all 
unbelief;"  and  he  who  can  believe,  that  such  a  series 
of  predictions  closely  connected  with  each  other,  and 
all  visibly  accomplished,  were  but  the  lucky  conjec- 
tures of  impostors,  may  to,  "I  believe  in  all  unbelief," 
add,  I  believe  every  absurdity  to  be  reasonable,  and 
every  impossibility  easy. 

11.  The  predictions  of  our  Lord  and  his  apostles 
have  been  accomplished  in  as  wonderful  a  manner  as 
those  of  the  former  prophets.  Some  of  the  prophecies 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  referred  to  his  disciples,  others  to 
his  enemies.  To  his  friends  he  said,  "  Ye  shall  be 
hated  of  all  men  for  my  name's  sake ;"  and  told  them 
that  parents  would  become  enemies  to  their  children, 
and  children  to  their  parents,  on  account  of  his  relig- 
ion, and  that  a  man's  foes  should  be  those  of  his  own 
household.  How  harmless  is  a  name,  yet  in  after  ages 
the  name  of  Christian  was  sufficient  to  ensure  martyr- 
dom to  multitudes  who  bore  it.  No  reader  of  eccle- 
siastical history  can  be  ignorant  of  this  fact.  Tertul- 
lian,  in  his  Apology,*  observes  :  "  If  a  Christian  is  ac- 
cused of  no  crime,  the  name  surely  must  be  of  a  strange 
nature  to  be  criminal  in  itself;"  he  adds,  "Some  are 
arrived  to  that  ])itch  of  aversion  to  the  very  name  of 
Christian,  that  tlicy  seem  to  have  entered  into  covenant 
witli  hatred,  and  bargained  to  gratify  this  passion  at 
the  expense  of  all  the  satisfactions  of  human  life,  ac- 
quiescing in  the  grossest  of  injuries,  rather  than  the 
liated  thing  of  Christian  should  come  within  their  doors. 

•  Tertulliaa's  Apology,  c.  iii.  The  apology  was  probably  writeu  about  A.  D.  200. 


PREDICTIONS    OF    THE    LORD    JESUS.  89 

The  husband,  now  cured  of  all  his  former  jealousy  by 
his  wife's  conversion  to  Christianity,  turns  her  and  her 
new  modesty  out  of  doors  together,  choosing- to  dwell 
with  an  adulteress  sooner  than  a  Christian  :  the  father, 
so  tender  of  the  undntifnl  son  in  his  Gentile  state,  dis- 
inherits him  now,  when  he  becomes  obedient  by  be- 
coming a  Christian  :  the  master,  heretofore  so  good  to 
his  unfaithful  slave,  discards  him  now  upon  his  fidelity 
and  his  religion.  So  that  the  husband  had  rather  have 
his  wife  false,  the  father  his  son  a  rebel,  the  master 
his  servant  a  rogue,  than  Christians  and  good  :  so  much 
is  the  hatred  of  our  name,  above  all  the  advantages  of 
virtue  flowing  from  it. 

"Now,  therefore,  if  all  this  odium  arises  purely  on 
account  of  our  name,  tell  me  how  a  poor  name  comes 
to  be  thu-s  to  blame,  or  a  simple  word  to  be  a  criminal. 
Before  we  give  entertainment  to  hatred  against  any 
sect,  whatever,  upon  account  of  its  name,  we  ought  in 
the  first  place  to  examine  the  nature  of  the  institution, 
and  trace  out  its  qualities  from  the  author,  or  the  author 
from  them ;  but  both  these  ways  of  inquiry  are  quite 
neglected  ;  and  our  enemies  storm  and  fire  at  a  word 
only.  Our  heavenly  Master,  and  his  heavenly  religion, 
are  both  unknown,  and  both  condemned,  without  any 
other  consideration,  but  that  of  the  bare  name  of  Chris- 
tian." 

Our  divine  Lord  also  forewarned  his  disciples  that 
they  might  expect  all  manner  of  evil  to  be  said  against 
them  falsely  for  his  name's  sake.  This  too  received 
a  dreadful  accomplishment.  The  basest  lies  that  hell 
itself  could  invent  were  circulated  respecting  the  primi- 
tive disciples.  They  were  said  to  indulge  even  in  their 
religious  assemblies  in  lewdness  and  incest,  and  abom- 
inations too  dark  to  be  named  ;  to  worship  the  head  of 
an  ass,  and  to  initiate  fresh  converts  at  a  meal,  when 
8* 


90  RUIN    OF    THE    JEWISH    NATION 

they  murdered  an  infant,  and  licked  up  liis  blood.* 
AVhat  but  tlie  spirit  of  Prophecy  enabled  the  blessed 
Jesus  thus  to  predict  the  treatment  his  disciples  were 
to  experience  for  ages  after  his  departure  from  the 
world  I  Would  an  impostor  have  uttered  such  predic- 
tions I  Would  he  have  said,  All  men  shall  hate  you, 
scandalize  you,  persecute  you,  and  think  they  do  God 
service  when  they  kill  you  on  my  account  ?  TJiis  is 
not  the  encouragement  that  impostors  hold  out  to 
their  disciples. 

12.  With  respect  to  his  enemies,  our  Lord's  prophe- 
cies were  not  less  express.  He  foretold  that  many 
false  prophets  should  arise  and  deceive  many ;  that  there 
should  be  wars  and  rumours  of  wars  ;  famines,  pesti- 
lences, earthquakes  ;  that  the  abomination  of  desolation 
should  stand  in  the  holy  place  ;  the  eagles  be  gathered 
where  the  carcase  was;  the  time  for  these  things  be  a 
period  of  the  greatest  tribulation,  Mat.  xxiv. ;  that  Jer- 
usalem should  be  compassed  with  armies ;  that  signs 
in  Heaven  should  precede  its  destruction  ;  that  of  the 
temple,  one  stone  should  not  be  left  upon  another ; 
that  the  Jews  should  fall  by  the  edge  of  the  sword, 
and  be  led  away  captive  into  all  nations  ;  and  Jerusa- 
lem be  trodden  down  of  the  Gentiles,  till  the  times  of 
the  Gentiles  be  fulfilled.  The  holy  scriptures  contain 
these  prophecies,  but  not  the  slightest  allusion  to  their 
accomplishment.  The  account  of  the  fulfilment  of 
these  ])redictions  is  furnished  by  Tacitus,  Josephus, 
&c.  From  the  latter  we  learn,  that  various  impostors, 
professing  to  be  the  Christ  or  Messiah  arose,  who  de- 
luded multitudes;  that  famines,  insurrections,  wars  and 
rumours  of  wars,  earthquakes,  and  pestilence,  afllicted 
Judea  or  the  neighbouring  parts.  Owing  to  a  solemn 
festival,  the  carcase,  or  body  of  the  Jewish  nation, 

*  See  TertuUian,  Mioucius  Felix,  &c. 


PROPHECIES    RESPECTING    ANTICHRIST.  91 

was  at  Jerusalem,  when  that  guilty  city  was  surround- 
ed by  the  Roman  armies ;  these  bore  the  eagle  as  their 
standard  ;  and  thus  fuliUlcd  the  prediction :  Where 
the  carcase  is,  there  shall  the  eagles  be  gathered  to- 
gether. While  the  Romans  besieged  the  city,  fomine 
and  pestilence  made  horrible  ravages  among  its  inhab- 
itants. Eleven  hundred  thousand  persons  were  de- 
stroyed by  these  or  by  the  sword,  and  the  city  was 
taken.  Ninety-seven  thousand  captives  were  taken 
during  the  war,  some  of  whom  were  sent  to  the  works 
in  Egypt ;  and  others  distributed  as  presents  through 
the  Roman  provinces,  to  perish  by  the  sword,  or  wild 
beasts  in  their  theatres.  Titus  wished  to  preserve  the 
temple,  but  in  vain,  for  he  could  not  restrain  the  fury 
of  his  own  soldiers.  Not  one  of  its  stones  was  left 
upon  another.  The  Romans  destroyed  the  houses, 
and  dug  up  the  walls.  So  that  Josephus  introduces  a 
Jew  as  saying,  Wliere  is  our  great  city  ?  It  is  alto- 
gether rooted  up,  and  torn  up  from  its  foundations. 
Josephus  also  mentions  fearful  sights  and  signs  that 
occurred,  and  in  his  history  gives  an  awful  and  affec- 
ting testimony  to  the  truth  of  our  Lord's  predictions, 
though  such  was  by  no  means  his  design.  One  of  the 
Lord's  predictions  respecting  the  Jews  is  at  this  day 
receiving  its  fulfilment.  Though  nearly  eighteen  hun- 
dred years  have  elapsed  since  the  destruction  of  Jeru- 
salem, it  has  never  been  restored  to  its  former  owners. 
It  is  still  trodden  down  by  the  Gentiles.* 

13.  The  New  Testament  contains  predictions  respect- 
ing many  other  events,  some  of  which  are  fulfilled, 
others  are  fulfilling,  and  others  wait  for  their  accom- 
plishment in  a  future  age.     Among  the  most  remark- 

*  For  a  highly  interesting  account  of  the  accomplishment  of  these,  and  all 
the^  other  scripture  Prophecies  alluded  to  in  this  sectioa,  see  Newton  on  the 
Prophecies. 


92  PROPHECIES    RESPECTING    ANTICHRIST. 

able  of  tliesc,  are  llie  proi)]iccies  relating  to  the  Roman 
catholic  church.  Who  that  beheld  the  firmness,  the 
labours,  the  piety  of  the  first  Christians,  could  have 
imagined  that  such  a  total  defection  from  the  faith  as 
afterwards  existed,  would  *take  place  among  the  pro- 
fessors of  the  Gospel?  Yet,  at  that  very  time,  the 
apostles  foretold  a  dreadful  and  general  apostasy. 

The  apostle  Paul  prophesied  of  this  apostasy,  or  foil- 
ing away ;  and  that  the  man  of  sin  should  be  revealed, 
who  opposeth  and  exalteth  himself  above  all  that  is 
called  God,  or  that  is  worshipped,  so  that  he,  as  God, 
sitteth  in  the  temple  of  God,  showing  himself  that  he 
is  God  ;  whose  coming  is  after  the  working  of  Satan, 
with  all  power,  and  signs,  and  lying  wonders,  2  Thess. 
ii.  3,  4.  9.  Speaking  of  the  same  apostasy,  in  another 
epistle,  he  adds,  "  Now  the  Spirit  speaketh  expressly 
that  in  the  latter  times,  some  shall  depart  from  the  faith, 
giving  heed  to  seducing  spirits  and  doctrines  of  devils, 
(or  doctrines  concerning  demons,)  speaking  lies  in  hy- 
pocrisy, having  their  conscience  seared  with  a  hot  iron, 
forbidding  to  marry,  and  commanding  to  abstain  from 
meats,"  &c.  1  Tim.  iv.  1,  2,  3. 

These  predictions  were  awfully  accomplished  in  the 
Romish  church.  Yet,  w^hile  tracing  their  accomplish- 
ment, the  writer  by  no  means  designs  to  insinuate  that 
modern  adherents  to  the  Romish  church  arc  universal- 
ly actuated  by  the  spirit,  and  maintain  the  tenets  of 
their  forefathers.  The  statements  that  follow  are  de- 
signed as  illustrations  of  the  accomplishment  of  prophe- 
cy, principally  in  the  spirit  and  conduct  of  Romanists 
in  past  ages.  Among  the  Roman  catholics  of  the 
present  day  there  are  many  men  of  honourable  and 
liberal  principles  ;  yet  it  is  still  evident,  that  some  men 
who  struggle  for  civil  freedom  refuse  to  grant  that  which 
is  religious.     The  apostasy  predicted  by  the  apostle 


PROniECIES    RESPECTING    ANTICillllST.  93 

Paul  spread  over  the  greater  part  of  the  Christian  world. 
The  man  of  sin,  or  the  popes  in  succession,  sat  in  the 
temple  or  church  of  God,  as  an  infalUble  ruler,  annul- 
ling even  the  decrees  of  the  Most  High,  altering  his 
ordinances,  and  forbidding  to  the  people  generally  the 
use  of  his  word.  To  the  popes  also  have  been  impi- 
ously applied  the  very  names  and  attributes  of  God. 
He  has  been  styled,  "  Our  Lord  God  the  pope  ;  another 
God  upon  earth ;  King  of  kings,  and  Lord  of  lords. 
The  same  is  the  dominion  of  God  and  the  pope.  To 
believe  that  our  Lord  God  the  pope  might  not  decree 
as  he  decreed,  it  were  a  matter  of  heresy.  The  power 
of  the  pope  is  greater  than  all  created  power,  and  ex- 
tends itself  to  things  celestial,  terrestrial,  and  infernal. 
The  pope  doeth  whatsoever  he  iisteth,  even  things  in- 
fernal, and  is  more  than  Gcd."*  Does  the  apostle  fore- 
tell the  signs  and  lying  wonders  of  the  anti-Christian 
power  ?  It  is  a  notorious  fact  that  the  church  of  Rome 
has  been  supported  by  various  impostures,  and  feigned 
miracles  or  lying  wonders,  which  are  professedly 
wrought  even  to  the  present  time ;  as  the  liquefying 
once  a  year  of  the  blood  of  St.  Januarius  at  Naples, 
&.C.  Does  the  apostle  mention  their  giving  heed  to 
doctrines  of  decils?  (or,  perhaps,  more  properly  about 
demons.)  This  has  been  fulfilled  by  the  idolatrous 
worship  of  images  and  saints  in  the  Romish  church ; 
for  demons,  the  original  word,  was  not  always,  by  the 
ancients,  taken  in  the  sense  of  devils,  but  meant  beings 
of  a  middle  class  between  God  and  men.  Speaking 
lies  in  hypocrisy. — This  has  been  fulfilled  in  the  j)ious, 
or  rather  impious  frauds  of  the  Roman  church,  and  in 
their  well-known  tenet  that  no  faith  was  to  be  kept 
with  heretics — which,  though  doubtless  rejected  and 
abhorred  by  many  Roman  catholics  now,  was  too  often 

*  See  Newton  ou  the  Prophecies,  Dissertation  XXII. 


94  PROPHECIES    RESPECTING    ANTICHRIST. 

acted  upon  in  darker  ages.  By  them  the  professors 
of  tlie  Gospel  were,  in  many  instances,  treacherously 
betruiled  and  afterwards  destroyed.  Forbidding  to 
marry. — God  says  marriage  is  honourable  in  all.  The 
llomisli  church  forbids  it  to  all  its  priests ;  and  evidently 
would  sooner  connive  at  their  cohabiting  with  concu- 
bines, tlian  allow  them  to  marry  virtuous  women ;  mul- 
titudes of  tlieir  priests  have  done  this,  and  the  popes 
themselves  have  been  fathers  of  illegitimate  sons  and 
daughters  whom  they  have  termed  nephews  and  nieces. 
Commanding  to  abstain  from  meats. — This  is  another 
well-known  part  of  the  popish  system.  On  certain 
days,  or  certain  parts  of  the  year,  the  use  of  meat  is 
forbidden,  and  by  a  thorough  catholic,  in  some  coun- 
tries, on  such  a  day  it  v/ould  be  esteemed  a  greater  sin 
to  eat  flesh,  than  to  murder  his  protestant  neighbour. 
In  the  Revelation,  the  apostle  John  speaks  fully  of  the 
same  power,  which  he  represents  as  drunk  with  the 
blood  of  the  martyrs.  The  persecutions  which  true 
Christians  have  endured  from  the  Romish  church  are 
"Well  known.  Ptlillions  have  been  martyred.  Some 
suppose  that  not  less  than  fifty  millions  of  persons  have 
in  different  ways  fallen  victims  to  the  persecuting  spirit 
of  the  church  of  Rome  ;  certainly  the  number  b.as  been 
exceedingly  great.  Among  other  particulars  respecting 
the  sufferings  of  some  of  these  Aqctims,  it  was  foretold 
that  no  man  might  buy  or  sell,  save  he  that  had  the 
mark  of  the  beast.  History  informs  us  that  edicts  were 
published  at  different  times,  forbidding  any  traffic,  any 
selling  or  buying  to  take  place  with  the  Waldenses  and 
Albigenses,  those  early  witnesses  for  the  truth.  Amidst 
all  the  corruptions  thus  foretold,  and  the  sufferings  which 
the  professors  of  the  truth  were  to  undergo,  it  was  still 
declared  that  the  church  of  Christ  should  preserve  its 
existence,  though  in  a  state  of  depression  and  deep  dis- 


PROPHECIES    RESPECTING    ANTICHRIST.  95 

tress.  This  too  has  been  accompHshcd.  When  popery 
commaiulcd  the  wenUh  and  power  ol"  the  Avorld,  and 
hesitated  not  to  murder  its  milUons,  still  it  could  not 
utterly  root  out  the  church  of  Jesus.  It  massacred 
multitudes,  but  others  still  arose ;  if  exterminated  in 
one  place,  they  appeared  in  another.  At  length  popery, 
after  triumphing  for  eight  or  ten  centuries,  received,  at 
the  Reformation,  a  wound  which  has  never  been  healed. 
And  the  efforts  now  making  to  circulate  the  Scriptures, 
and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  nation,  furnish  reason 
forbejieving  that  the  period  is  approaching  when  Chris- 
tianity shall  become  the  religion  of  the  world,  and  all 
superstitious  systems  be  destroyed  by  the  brightness 
of  the  Redeemer's  coming,  in  the  universal  diffusion 
and  complete  triumph  of  his  Gospel. 

Whence  but  from  heaven  did  all  these  prophecies 
descend  ?  No  book  upon  earth  except  the  Bible,  con- 
tains such  a  series  of  predictions,  whose  truth  has  been 
manifested  by  their  literal  accomplishment.  Whence 
had  the  writers  this  knowledge  of  futurity  ?  It  could 
be  given  them  by  none  but  God;  and  the  accomplish- 
ment of  so  many  remarkable  prophecies,  of  which  those 
respecting  the  Arabs,  the  Jews,  the  conversion  of  the 
Gentiles,  and  the  Romish  church  are  at  this  time  ful- 
filling before  our  eyes,  decisively  proves  that  the 
])rophets  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  the  Lord  Jesus 
and  his  apostles  were  the  inspired  messengers  of  the 
Most  High.* 

*  The  remarks  in  sections  1,  2,  3,  4,  11,  12, 13,  of  tliis  chapter,  are  extracted 
from  Newton  on  the  Prophecies,  to  which  the  reader  is  recommended,  for  a  full 
and  interesting  illustration  of  the  important  subject  of  Prophecy.  What  is  here 
attempted  is  a  brief  and  very  imperfect  view,  yet,  brief  and  imperfect  as  it  is, 
the  writer  introduces  it  from  a  persuasion  that  it  may  instruct  and  edify  some 
who  have  not  access  to  larger  works.  See,  for  some  further  illustrations  of  the 
fulfilment  of  Prophecy,  Keith's  Evidence  of  Prophecy,  published  by  the  Re- 
ligious Tract  Society. 


96  Tin:    ARGUMENT    PROPOSED. 

CHAPTER    IV. 

THE    PRACTICAL    TENDENCY    OF    CHRISTIANITY,    AN    IN- 
FALLIBLE   PROOF    OF    ITS    DIVINE    ORIGIN. 

1.  A  VERY  Strong,  indeed  an  overwhelming,  proof 
of  tlic  divinity  of  Christianity  springs  from  its  holy  and 
benevolent  nature.  The  more  any  person  imbibes  the 
spirit  of  the  Gospel,  the  more  deeply  will  the  force  of 
this  argument  be  felt. 

Were  a  skilful  artist  invited  to  form  a  judgment  re- 
specting some  complicated  piece  of  machinery  ;  •  were 
he,  for  that  purpose,  to  enter  a  silk-mill,  and,  instead 
of  finding  the  whole  machine  in  action,  to  find  but  a 
small  part  of  it  at  work,  he  would  not  estimate  the 
value  of  tlie  machine  from  what  he  saw  it  performing, 
but  from  what  he  would  perceive  it  designed  and  fitted 
to  perform.  The  principle  on  which  the  artist  in  this 
case  would  form  his  judgment,  is  a  principle  carried 
into  the  most  important  concerns  of  human  life.  In 
a  court  of  justice  hov/  much  is  attributed  to  design ! 
Is  a  man  arraigned  as  a  murderer,  for  slaying  his  fellow 
man,  if  it  be  proved  that  he  had  no  design  to  kill,  what 
jury  would  convict  him  ?  Has  another  set  fire  to  a 
house,  and  the  flames  spread  and  burnt  down  a 
town  ?  if  it  be  proved  that  he  did  it  accidentally,  and 
without  design,  he  is  esteemed  an  innocent  man.  On 
the  other  hand,  has  a  man  assaulted  his  neighbour,  and 
really  done  him  little  injury,  but  designed  to  kill  him  ? 
this  man,  if  an  intention  to  kill  is  fully  proved  at  the 
bar  of  justice,  is  in  the  eye  of  the  law  a  murderer, 
and  as  a  murderer  must  he  suffer.  The  same  princi- 
ple acts  with  all  its  force  in  a  thousand  other  instances. 
Has  a  friend  greatly  injured  me,  yet  am  I  convinced 
he  truly  designed  as  much,  good  as  he  has  done  harm? 
I  should  think  of  his  design,  and  not  love  him  less  than 


THE    ARGUMENT    PROrOSED. 


97 


before.  Has  another  bestowed  some  great  benefit  on 
me,  yet  am  I  convinced  he  meant  me  no  kindness?  In 
that  case  I  should  feel  no  gratitude,  for  I  should  think 
of  his  design.  Now  let  us  bring  Christianity  to  trial 
upon  this  principle.  Let  us  inquire,  not  what  it  has 
done,  though  on  this  much  might  be  said,  but  what  it 
appears  designed  and  fitted  to  do.  This  is  the  only 
way  of  forming  a  fair  judgment  respecting  its  claims. 
AVe  cannot  possibly  form  a  just  estimate  of  Christian- 
ity, by  viewing  a  world  of  which  the  greater  part  are 
strangers  to  its  influence  ;  nor  by  surveying  the  con- 
duct of  those,  who  though  termed  Christians,  really  re- 
fuse to  imbibe  its  dispositions,  to  submit  to  its  pre- 
cepts, and  to  follow  its  directions.  Were  wolves  to 
assume  the  name  of  lambs,  we  could  not  judge  of  the 
disposition  of  a  lamb,  by  looking  at  a  wolf.  We  can- 
not, it  may  be  added,  form  a  just  estimate  of  Christian- 
ity, even  by  contemplating  it  as  displayed  in  its  most 
sincere  disciples,  for  they  are  the  first  to  acknowledge 
that  they  fall  far  short  of  what  their  religion  demands; 
that  their  piety  is,  as  it  were,  in  a  weak  and  sickly  state. 
Wlio  that  wished  to  paint  a  just  likeness  of  the  human 
form,  would  go  to  an  hospital,  and  draw  the  picture  of 
sufferers  that  had  lost  a  leg  or  an  arm  ;  or  who  were 
withered  with  the  palsy,  or  burnt  with  fever,  or  wasted 
away  by  consumption  ?  Christianity  is  professedly  de- 
signed as  a  religion  for  all  mankind.  Now,  as  to  form 
a  just  opinion  respecting  the  nature  and  powers  of 
man,  we  must  see  him  in  health ;  so  to  know  what 
Christianity  is,  we  must  consider  what  is  its  design, 
and  what  would  be  its  effects,  if  all  the  world  were 
subjected  to  its  influence,  and  every  human  being  fully 
under  its  power.  We  now  see  a  few  parts  of  the 
Christian  machine  in  action.  To  see  it  all  in  motion, 
we  must  behold  it  reigning  with  a  sovereign  sway  in 
9 


98    QUOTATIOXS  FUOM  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT. 

every  huiiian  heart.  For  this  it  is  designed  ;  but  this 
we  cannot  sec ;  yet  we  may  form  a  fair  estimate  of  its 
nature,  by  considering-  wliat  would  be  the  effects  were 
it  thus  brought  into  full  and  universal  action.  No  other 
estimate  of  Christianity  can  be  fair  and  impartial.  For 
if  we  survey  human  corruptions,  these  do  not  spring 
from  Christianity,  it  forbids  all  corruption.  If  we  sur- 
vey the  defects  of  sincere  Christians,  these  are  not 
caused  by  the  religion  they  have,  but  by  the  want  of 
more  :  they  spring  from  the  evil,  which  Christianit}'  is 
designed  to  correct. 

2.  In  taking  a  view  of  the  nature  of  Christianity,  we 
may  first  glance  at  its  account  of  that  adorable  Being 
from  whom  it  professes  to  have  derived  its  origin. 

"  God  is  a  spirit,"  John  iv.  24.  "  The  God  of  glory," 
Acts  vii.  2.  "The  living  God  who  made  heaven  and 
earth,"  Acts  xiv.  15.  "  He  giveth  to  all,  life  and  breath, 
and  all  things,"  Acts  xvii.  25.  "He  maketh  his  sun 
to  rise  on  the  evil  and  on  the  good ;  and  sendeth  rain 
on  the  just  and  on  the  unjust  also,"  Matt.  v.  45.  "Is 
the  blessed  and  only  Potentate,  the  King  of  kings,  and 
Lord  of  lords,"  1  Tim.  vi.  15.  "The  King  eternal, 
immortal,  invisible,"  1  Tim.  i.  17.  "Who  only  hath 
immortality  dwelling  in  the  light  which  no  man  can 
approach  unto,"  1  Tim,  vi.  16.  ''  Heaven  is  his  throne, 
and  the  earth  his  footstool,"  Acts  vii.  49.  "He  is 
the  Lord  God  Almighty,"  Rev.  iv.  8.  "  Who  trieth  our 
hearts,"  1  Thess.  ii.  4.  "Neither  is  there  any  creature 
that  is  not  manifest  in  his  sio;ht ;  but  all  things  are 
naked  and  open  unto  the  eyes  of  him,  with  whom  we 
have  to  do,"  Ileb.  iv.  13.  He  is  our  Father.  A 
"heavenly  Father  who  seeth  in  secret,"  Matt.  vi.  1. 
14.  "God  the  only  wise,"  Rom.  xvi.  27.  "Who 
cannot  be  tempted  with  evil,  neither  tempteth  he  any 
man,"  Jam.  i.  13.     "  There  is  none  good  but  God," 


QUOTATIONS    FROM    THE    NEW    TESTAMENT.        99 

Mark  x.  18.  "  lie  only  is  holy  ;  just  and  true  are  his 
ways,"  Rev.  xv.  3,  4.  "He  is  the  Father  of  mercies, 
and  the  God  of  all  comfort,"  2  Cor.  i.  3.  "  God  who 
is  rich  in  mercy,"  Ep'^-  ii-  ^'  "And  long-suflcring  to- 
ward us,"  2  Pet.  iii.  15.  "He  is  the  God  of  all 
grace,"  1  Pet.  v.  10.  "Who  giveth  unto  all  men  lih- 
erally,  and  upbraideth  not,"  Jam.  i.  .5.  "  He  fecdcth 
the  fowls  of  the  air  ;  and  clothes  the  herb  of  the  field 
in  beauty ;  and  knows  that  his  children  have  need  of 
raiment  and  of  food,"  Matt.  vi.  32.  "Behold  the 
fowls  of  the  air,  for  they  sow  not,  neither  do  they 
reap,  nor  gather  into  barns ;  which  neither  have 
storehouse,  nor  barn,  and  God  feedeth  them,"  Matt. 
vi.  26  ;  Luke  xii.  24.  Or  "  Consider  the  lilies  of  the 
field  how  they  grow  ;  they  toil  not,  they  spin  not ;  yet 
Solomon  in  all  his  glory  was  not  arrayed  like  one  of 
these,"  Matt.  vi.  28  ;  Luke  xii.  27.  "'He  is  a  faithful 
Creator,"  1  Pet.  iv.  19.  "  The  Father  of  lights,  with 
whom  is  no  variableness,  neither  shadow  of  turning," 
Jam.  i.  17.  "  Every  one  of  us  shall  give  account  of 
himself  to  God,"  Rom.  xiv.  12.  "He  hath  appointed 
a  day  in  which  he  will  judge  the  world  in  righteous- 
ness," Acts  xvii.  31.  "  God  shall  judge  the  secrets  of 
men  by  Jesus  Christ,"  Rom.  ii.  10.  "  Of  him,  and 
through  him,  and  to  him,  are  all  things  :  to  whom  be 
glory  for  ever.     Amen."     Rom.  xi.  36. 

Thus  it  is  the  doctrine  of  the  Christian  system,  that 
in  God  every  perfection  meets  ;  that  from  Him  we  de- 
rive our  being ;  that  all  our  mercies  flow  from  his 
bounty ;  that  to  him  we  are  accountable  for  our  con- 
duct here  ;  and  that  hereafter  we  shall  in  his  fiivour 
find  eternal  Hfe,  or  in  his  anger  eternal  death. 

3.  In  considering  the  design  of  Christianity,  we  may 
view  it  as  designed  to  repress  evil,  and  to  produce 
good.     In  viewing  it  as  designed  to  repress  evil,  wo 


100  TENDENCY    TO    REPRESS    EVIL. 

may  observe,  there  is  no  sin  wliich  it  sanctions ;  no 
vice,  whose  extirpation  it  does  not  attempt.  "  God 
now  commandeth  all  men  every  where  to  repent," 
Acts  xvii.  30.  "  Let  every  one  that  nameth  the  name 
of  Christ  depart  from  iniquity,"  2  Tim.  ii.  19.  "  Ab- 
stain from  fleshly  lusts  which  war  against  the  soul," 
1  Pet.  ii.  11.  "Having  these  promises,  let  us  cleanse 
ourselves  frrm  all  fdthiness  of  the  flesh  and  of  the 
spirit,"  2  Cor.  vii.  1.  "The  work*  of  the  flesh  are 
manifest,  which  are  these  ;  adultery,  fornication,  un- 
cleanness,  lasciviousness,  idolatry, witchcraft,  hatred, va- 
riance, emulations,  wrath,  strife,  seditions,  heresies,  en- 
vyings,  murders,  drunkenness,  revellings,  and  suchlike. 
Of  the  which  I  tell  you  before,  as  I  have  also  told  you 
in  times  past,  that  they  which  do  such  things  shall  not 
inherit  the  kingdom  of  God,"  Gal.  v.  19—21.  "Put 
ye  ofl'  the  old  man  which  is  corrupt  according  to  the 
deceitful  lust ;  and  be  renewed  in  the  spirit  of  your 
mind,"  Eph.  iv.  22.  "  Fornication,  and  all  uncleanness, 
or  covetousness,  let  it  not  once  be  named  among  you, 
as  becometh  saints.  Neither  filthiness,  nor  foolish  talk- 
ing, nor  jesting,  which  are  not  convenient.  For  this 
ye  know,  that  no  whoremonger,  nor  unclean  person, 
nor  covetous  man,  who  is  an  idolater,  hath  any  inher- 
itance in  the  kingdom  of  Christ  and  of  God,"  Eph.  v. 
3 — 5.  "  Be  not  drunk  with  w^ine,  wherein  is  excess," 
Eph.  V.  18.  "  Let  him  that  stole  steal  no  more,"  Eph. 
iv.  28.  "Let  no  man  go  beyond,  and  defraud  his  brother 
in  any  matter,"  1  Thess.  iv.  6.  "  Owe  no  man  any 
thing,"  Rom.  xiii.  8.  "Let  no  corrupt  communication 
proceed  out  of  your  mouth.  Grieve  not  the  Holy  Spirit 
of  God,"  Eph.  iv.  29,  30.  "Lie  not  one  to  another, 
seeing  that  you  have  put  off  the  old  man  with  his  deeds," 
Col.  iii.  9.  "Swear  not  at  ail;  but  let  your  commu- 
nication be  yea,  yea  ;  nay,  nay  ;  for  whatsoever  is  more 


TENDENCY    TO    REPRESS    EAIL.  101 

than  this  comctli  of  evil,"  Matt.  v.  31.  37.  "Bless  and 
curse  not,"  Rom.  xii.  11.  "  He  that  will  love  life  let 
him  refrain  his  tonnue  from  evil,  and  his  lips  that  they 
speak  no  guile,"  1  Pet.  iii.  10.  "  The  tongue  is  a  fire, 
a  world  of  ini(|uity;  it  detlleth  the  whole  body;  and 
settcth  on  lire  the  course  of  nature,  and  is  set  on  fire 
of  hell ;  it  is  an  unruly  evil  full  of  deadly  poison.  Out 
of  the  same  mouth  proceedcth  blessing  and  cursing; 
my  brethren,  these  things  ought  not  so  to  be,"  Jam. 
iii.  6.  8.  10.  "  Speak  evil  of  no  man,"  Tit.  iii.  2.  "  Be 
ye  angry,  and  sin  not :  let  not  the  sun  go  down  upon 
your  wrath.  Let  all  bitterness,  and  wrath,  and  anger,  and 
clamour,  and  evil  speaking,  be  put  away  from  you,  with 
all  malice,"  Eph.  iv  20.  31.  "Laying  aside  all  malice 
and  all  guile,  and  hypocrisies,  and  envies,  and  all  evil 
speakings,  desire  the  sincere  milk  of  the  word,"  1  Pet. 
ii.  1.  "Avenge  not  yourselves,  but  rather  give  place 
unto  wrath,"  Rom.  xii.  19.  "  Not  rendering  evil  for 
evil ;  or  railing  for  railing,"  1  Pet.  iii.  9.  "  Be  not  over- 
come of  evil ;  but  overcome  evil  with  good,"  Rom.  xii. 
21.  "God  resisteth  the  proud,"  Jam.  iv.  6.  "Watch 
and  pray  that  ye  enter  not  into  temptation,"  Matt.  xxvi. 
41. 

Not  only  do  the  sacred  writers  thus  forbid  the  crimes 
to  which  man  is  so  prone,  but  they  denounce  tremen- 
dous wrath  against  the  criminal.  They  declare  that 
no  one  can  be  a  child  of  God,  who  does  not  renounce 
sin  ;  and  they  call  on  the  disciples  of  Jesus  not  merely 
to  renounce,  but  to  hate  iniquity.  "  Have  no  fellow- 
ship with  the  unfruitful  works  of  darkness,"  Eph.  v. 
11.  "Abstain  from  all  appearance  of  evil,"  1  Thess. 
v.  23.  "Abhor  that  which  is  evil,"  Rorn.  xii.  9.  "A 
good  tree  cannot  bring  forth  evil  fruit;  by  their  fruits 
ye  shall  know  them,"  Matt.  vii.  18.  20.  "God  is  light, 
and  in  him  is  no  darkness  at  all.  If  we  say  that  we 
9* 


102  ELEVATED    HOLINESS. 

have  followsliip  with  liiin  and  M^alk  in  darkness,  we 
He,  and  do  not  the  truth,"  1  John  i.  5,  6.  "He  that 
saith,  I  know  him,  and  keepeth  not  his  commandments, 
is  a  har,  and  the  truth  is  not  in  him,"  1  John  ii.  4. 
"  In  this  the  cliildren  of  God  are  manifest,  and  the  cliil- 
dren  of  the  devil.  Whosoever  doth  not  righteousness 
is  not  of  God,"  1  John  iii.  10.  "  Not  every  one  that 
saith  to  mc  Lord,  Lord,  shall  enter  into  the  kingdom 
of  heaven,  but  he  that  doeth  the  will  of  my  Father, 
who  is  in  heaven,"  Matt.  vii.  21.  "The  unrighteous 
shall  not  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God,"  1  Cor.  vi.  9. 
"  There  shall  in  no  wise  enter  into  it  any  thing  that 
deliletli,"  Rev.  xxi.  27.  "  God  will  render  to  every 
man  according  to  his  deeds :  unto  them  that  are  con- 
tentious, and  do  not  obey  the  truth,  but  obey  unright- 
eousness, indignation  and  wrath ;  tribulation  and  an- 
guish upon  every  soul  of  man  that  doeth  evil,  of  the 
Jew  first,  and  also  of  the  Gentile,"  Rom.  ii.  6.  8,  9. 
The  fearful  and  unbelieving,  and  the  abominable,  and 
murderers,  and  whoremongers,  and  sorcerers,  and  idola- 
ters, and  all  liars,  shall  have  their  part  in  the  lake  which 
burnetii  with  fire  and  brimstone,  which  is  the  second 
death,"  Rev.  xxi.  8. 

4.  The  precepts  given  by  the  Lord  Jesus  and  his 
apostles,  not  merely  forbid  all  sin,  but  inculcate  holi- 
ness of  the  most  exalted  kind  ;  and  represent  the  mo- 
tives for  this  holiness  of  a  nature  as  exalted.  "  Ye 
are  not  your  own,  for  ye  are  bought  with  a  price  ; 
therefore  glorify  God  in  your  body  and  spirit  which  are 
God's,"  1  Cor.  vi.  20.  "Your  bodies  are  the  members 
of  Christ,"  1  Cor.  vi.  15.  "  Ye  are  the  temple  of  God, 
and  the  Spirit  of  God  dwclleth  in  you,"  1  Cor.  iii.  16. 
"We  Avalk  by  faith  not  by  sight,"  2  Cor.  v.  7.  "We 
look  not  at  the  things  which  are  seen,  but  at  the  things 
M'hich  arc  not  seen ;  for  the  things  w^hich  are  seen  are 


ELEVATED    HOLINESS.  103 

temporal,  but  tlie  things  which  arc  not  seen  are  eter- 
nal," 2  Cor.  iv.  18. 

The  Scriptures  represent  real  Christians  as  those 
who  live  to  Goil.  "  None  of  us  livetli  to  himself,  and 
no  man  dieth  to  himself;  for  whether  we  live,  we  live 
unto  the  Lord  ;  and  whether  we  die,  we  die  unto  the 
Lord :  whether  we  live  therefore  or  die,  we  are  the 
Lord's,"  Rom.  xiv.  7,  8.  In  the  example  of  Christ, 
as  represented  in  his  word,  a  pattern  of  pure  and  spot- 
less excellence  is  presented  to  our  view  ;  and  this  ex- 
ample his  followers  are  directed  to  copy.  "Christ 
also  suffered  for  us,  leaving  us  an  example,  that  ye 
should  follow  his  steps,"  1  Pet.  ii.  21.  The  scriptures 
declare  that  love  to  God  is  the  first  and  great  com- 
mandment:  "Thou  shaltlove  the  Lord  thy  God  with 
all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy 
mind,  and  with  all  thy  strength,"  Matt,  xxii.37  ;  Luke 
X.  27,  and  represent  the  Saviour  as  having  performed 
such  a  work,  as  entitles  him  to  the  most  fervent  afl'ec- 
tion  of  the  heart.  "  He  that  loveth  fiither  or  mother 
more  than  me  is  not  worthy  of  me  ;  and  he  that  loveth 
son  or  daughter  more  than  me,  is  not  worthy  of  me ; 
and  he  that  taketh  not  his  cross,  and  followeth  after 
me,  is  not  worthy  of  me,"  Matt.  x.  37.  Yet  if  call- 
ed to  this  trial  the  Christian  has  a  source  of  joy  : 
"  Rejoice  in  the  Lord  always,"  Phil.  iv.  4. 

On  all  the  subjects  most  connected  with  the  welfare 
of  man,  the  New  Testament  furnishes  important 
instruction. 

"Be  careful  (anxious)  for  nothing;  but  in  every 
thing,  by  prayer  and  supplication  with  thanksgiving, 
let  your  requests  be  made  known  unto  God,"  Phil.  iv. 
6.  "  Pray  without  ceasing ;  in  every  thing  give 
thanks,"  1  Thess.  v.  17,  18.  "Be  ye  thankful,"  Col. 
ill.  15.     "  When  thou  prayest,  enter  into  thy  closet, 


104  ELEVATED    HOLINESS. 

and  shut  thy  door,  and  pray  to  thy  Father,  who  is  in 
secret ;  and  thy  Father,  who  seeth  in  secret,  shall  re- 
ward thee  openly,"  Matt.  vi.  6. 

Connected  with  a  devotional  is  a  humble  spirit. 
"  Blessed  are  the  poor  in  spirit ;  for  theirs  is  the  king- 
dom of  heaven,"  Matt.  v.  3.  "  Mind  not  high  things, 
but  condescend  to  men  of  low  estate.  Be  not  wise  in 
your  own  conceits,"  Rom.  xii.  16.  "  All  of  you  be 
clothed  with  humility,"  1  Pet.  v.  5.  "  Let  this  mind 
be  in  you  which  was  also  in  Christ.  Who  being  in 
the  form  of  God,  thought  it  not  robbery  to  be  equal 
with  God,  but  made  himself  of  no  reputation,"  Phil.  ii. 
5—7. 

Contentment,  resignation,  and  trust  in  God,  are  emi- 
nent Christian  graces.  "  Let  your  conversation  be 
without  covetousness,  and  be  content  with  such  things 
as  ye  have,  for  he  hath  said,  I  will  never  leave  thee, 
nor  forsake  thee,"  Heb.  xiii.  5.  "  Casting  all  your 
care  upon  him,  for  he  careth  for  you,"  1  Pet.  v.  7. 
"  Let  us  run  with  patience  the  race  that  is  set  before 
us,"  Heb.  xii.  L  "Be  patient  in  tribulation,"  Rom. 
xii.  12.  "Despise  not  thou  the  chastening  of  the 
Lord,  nor  faint  when  thou  art  rebuked  of  him,"  Heb. 
xii.  5.  "  Not  my  will  but  thine  be  done,"  Luke  xxii.  42 
"  The  cup  which  my  Father  hath  given  me,  shall  I  not 
drink  it?"  John  xvlii.  IL  "  Fear  not  them  which  kill 
the  body,  and  after  that  have  no  m.ore  that  they  can 
do,"  Luke  xii.  4.  "Fear  not,  little  flock,  for  it  is 
your  Father's  good  pleasure  to  give  you  the  king- 
dom," Luke  xii.  32. 

Holiness  is  represented  as  indispensable  in  the 
Christian  character.  "  Blessed  are  they  that  hear  the 
word  of  God,  and  keep  it,"  Luke  xi.  28.  "Ye  are 
my  friends,  if  ye  do  whatsoever  I  command  you," 
John  XV.  14.     "  Be  ye  holy,  for  I  am  holy,"  1  Pet.  i. 


ELEVATED    HOLINESS.  105 

16.  "  Follow  holiness,  without  which  no  man  shall 
see  the  Lord,"  Heb.  xii.  14.  "  May  the  very  God  of 
peace  sanctify  you  Avholly ;  and  your  whole  spirit, 
and  soul,  and  body,  be  preserved  blameless  unto  the 
coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,"  1  Thcss.  v.  23. — 
"  Every  man  that  hath  this  hope  in  him,  purifieth  him- 
self, even  as  he  is  pure,"  1  John  iii.  3.  "  The  fruit 
of  the  Spirit  is  love,  joy,  peace,  long-suffering,  gen- 
tleness, goodness,  faith,  meekness,  temperance  ;  and 
they  that  are  Christ's  have  cruciiied  the  flesh,  with  its 
aflections  and  lusts,  Gal.  v.  22 — 24."  "  Giving  all  dili- 
gence, add  to  your  laith  virtue,  and  to  virtue  know- 
ledge, and  to  knowledge  temperance,  and  to  temper- 
ance patience,  and  to  patience  godliness,  and  to  godli- 
ness brotherly  kindness,  and  to  brotherly  kindness 
charity,"  2  Pet.  i.  5.  "  Whatsoever  things  are  true, 
whatsoever  things  are  honest,  whatsoever  things  are 
just,  whatsoever  things  are  pure,  whatsoever  things 
are  lovely,  whatsoever  things  are  of  good  report ;  if 
there  be  any  virtue,  and  if  there  be  any  praise,  think 
on  these  things,"  Phil.  iv.  8. 

The  Christian  is  taught  to  set  his  affections  on  nobler 
objects  than  those  of  this  transitory  state.  "  Lay  not 
up  for  yourselves  treasures  upon  earth,  where  moth 
and  rust  corrupt,  and  thieves  break  through  and  steal ; 
but  lay  up  for  yourselves  treasures  in  heaven,  where 
neither  moth  nor  rust  doth  corrupt,  aud  where  thieves 
do  not  break  through  nor  steal,"  Matt.  vi.  19.  "  Set 
your  affections  on  the  things  above,  and  not  on  things 
on  the  earth,"  Col.  iii.  2.  "Our  conversation  is  in 
heaven,  from  whence  we  look  for  the  Saviour,"  Phil, 
iii.  20.  "  Here  we  have  no  continuing  city,  but  we 
seek  one  to  come,"  Heb.  xiii.  14. 

Benevolence  and  love  are  graces,  on  which  the  great 
Author  of  the  Gospel  has  laid  the  utmost  stress ;  and 


106  ELEVATED    HOLINESS. 

these  graces  are  not,  like  the  benevolence  of  philoso- 
phy, to  be  exhausted  in  canting  whinings  about  intense 
sympathy,  and  fine  expressions  about  great  liberality, 
but  are  to  be  displayed  by  the  mortification  of  selfish 
principles,  and  by  active  exertions  to  promote  the 
welfare  of  others.  "  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbour 
as  thyself,"  Matt.  xxii.  39.  "  This  is  my  command- 
ment that  ye  love  one  another,  as  I  have  loved  you," 
John  XV.  12.  "By  love  serve  one  another,"  Gal.  v. 
13.  "Be  ye  kind  one  to  another,  tender-hearted,  for- 
giving one  another,  even  as  God  for  Christ's  sake  hath 
forgiven  you.  Be  ye  therefore  followers  of  God,  as 
dear  children,  and  walk  in  love,  as  Christ  also  hath 
loved  us,"  Eph.  iv.  32.  v.  1.  "We  ought  to  lay  down 
our  lives  for  the  brethren,"  1  John  iii.  16.  "  If  a 
man  say,  I  love  God,  and  hateth  his  brother,  he 
is  a  liar,"  1  John  iv.  20.  "  All  things,  Avhatsoever  ye 
would  that  men  should  do  to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to 
them,"  Matt.  vii.  12.  "Give  to  him  that  asketh  thee ; 
and  from  him  that  would  borrow  of  thee,  turn  not  thou 
away,"  Matt.  v.  42.  "  Let  no  man  seek  his  own,  but 
every  man  another's  welfare,"  1  Cor.  x.  24.  "  Bear 
ye  one  another's  burdens,  and  so  fulfil  the  law  of 
Christ,"  Gal.  vi.  2.  "  Rejoice  with  them  that  rejoice ; 
and  weep  with  them  that  weep,"  Rom.  xii.  15.  "To 
do  good  and  to  communicate,  forget  not ;  for  with  such 
sacrifices  God  is  well  pleased,"  Heb,  xiii.  16.  "Pure 
religion  and  undcfiled,  before  God  and  the  Father,  is 
this,  to  visit  the  fatherless  and  widows  in  their  afflic- 
tion, and  to  keep  himself  unspotted  from  the  world," 
Jam.  i.  27.  "  Whoso  hath  this  world's  goods,  and 
seeth  his  brother  have  need,  and  shutteth  up  his  bow- 
els of  compassion  from  him,  how  dwelleth  the  love  of 
God  in  him  ?"  1  John  iii.  17.  "It  is  more  blessed  to 
give  than  to  receive,"  Acts  xx.  35.     "  He  which  soweth 


ELEVATED    HOLINESS.  107 

sparino^ly  shall  reap  also  s})arinoly ;  and  he  which  sowelh 
boiiiuitully  shall  reap  also  bountifully,"  2  Cor.  ix.  0. 

Mercy,  meekness,  the  love  of  peace  and  forgiveness 
are  all  strongly  inculcated  in  the  Christian  system. 
"  Blessed  are  the  merciful  for  they  shall  obtain  mercy," 
Matt.  V.  7.  "  Blessed  are  the  peace-makers,  for  they 
shall  be  called  the  children  of  God,"  Matt.  v.  9.  "If 
it  be  possible,  as  much  as  licth  in  you,  live  peaceably 
with  all  men,"  Uom.  xii.  18.  "  Be  ye  all  of  one  mind," 
1  Pet.  iii.  8.  "  When  ye  stand  praying,  forgive,  if  yc 
have  aught  against  any,"  Mark  xi.  25.  "  If  ye  forgive 
men  their  trespasses,  your  heavenly  Father  will  also 
forgive  you  ;  but  if  ye  forgive  not  men  their  trespass- 
es, neither  will  your  Father  forgive  your  trespasses," 
Matt.  vi.  14,  15.  "  Love  your  enemies,  bless  them 
that  curse  you ;  do  good  to  them  that  hate  you  ;  and 
pray  for  them  that  despitefully  use  you,  and  persecute 
you  ;  that  ye  may  be  the  children  of  your  Father, 
which  is  in  heaven ;  for  he  maketh  his  sun  to  rise  on 
the  evil  and  on  the  good,  and  sendeth  rain  on  the  just 
and  on  the  unjust  also,"  Matt.  v.  44,  45.  "Recom- 
pense to  no  man  evil  for  evil.  If  thy  enemy  hunger, 
feed  him ;  if  he  thirst,  give  him  drink,"  Rom.  xii.  17.  20. 

Religion  inculcates  diligence  in  the  pursuit  of  piety  ; 
and  in  attention  to  the  necessary  duties  of  this  mortal 
state.  "Let  the  word  of  Christ  dwell  in  you  richly 
with  all  wisdom,  teaching  and  admonishing  one  another 
in  psalms,  and  hymns,  and  spiritual  songs,  singing  with 
grace  in  your  hearts  unto  the  Lord.  And  whatsoever 
ye  do  in  word  or  deed,  do  all  in  the  name  of  the  Lord 
.Jesus,  giving  thanks  to  God  and  the  Father  by  him," 
Col.  iii.  15,  IG.  "  Be  not  slothful  in  business,  fervent 
in  spirit,  serving  the  Lord.  Provide  things  honest  in 
the  sight  of  all  men,"  Rom.  xii.  11.17.  "If  any  will 
not  work,  neither  should  he  eat,"  2  Thess.  iii.  10.    "  If 


108  ELEVATED    HOLINESS. 

any  provide  not  for  liis  own,  he  hath  denied  the  faith, 
and  is  worse  than  an  infidel,"  1  Tim.  v.  8. 

Christianity  teaches  its  disciples  so  to  act  in  the  va- 
rions  relations  of  domestic  and  social  life,  that  the  peace 
and  happiness  of  families,  or  nations,  must  be  the  in- 
evitable result.  "  Teach  the  young  women  to  be  so- 
ber, to  love  their  husbands,  to  love  their  children,  to 
be  discreet,  chaste,  keepers  at  home,  good,  obedient  to 
their  own  husbands.  The  aged  women  likewise,  that 
they  be  in  behaviour  as  becometh  holiness  ;  not  false 
accusers,  not  given  to  much  wine,  teachers  of  good 
things,"  Tit.  ii.  4,  5.  "Husbands,  love  your  wives, 
even  as  Christ  also  loved  the  church,  and  gave  himself 
for  it.  So  ought  men  to  love  their  wives  as  their  own 
bodies,"  Eph.  v.  25.  "  Speak  thou,  that  the  aged  men 
be  sober,  grave,  temperate,  sound  in  foith,  in  charity, 
in  patience.  Young  men,  exhort  to  be  sober-minded," 
Tit.  ii.  2.  6.  ''Ye  younger,  submit  yourselves  unto  the 
elder,"  1  Pet.  v.  5.  "  Children,  obey  your  parents  in 
the  Lord,  for  this  is  right.  Honour  thy  father  and  thy 
mother  that  it  may  be  well  with  thee,"  Eph.  vi.  1.  3. 
"Fathers,  provoke  not  your  children  to  anger,  lest 
they  be  discouraged,"  Col.  iii.  21.  "But  bring  them 
up  in  the  nurture  and  admonition  of  the  Lord,"  Eph.  vi. 
4.  "  Servants,  be  obedient  to  them  that  are  your  masters : 
not  with  eye-service,  as  men  pleasers ;  but  as  the  ser- 
vants of  Christ,  doing  the  will  of  God  from  the  heart," 
Eph.  vi.  5,  6.  "Be  subject  not  only  to  the  good  and 
gentle,  but  also  to  the  fro  ward,"  1  Pet.  ii.  18.  "  And 
they  that  have  believing  masters,  let  them  not  despise 
them  because  they  are  brethren ;  but  rather  do  them 
service,  because  they  are  faithful  and  beloved,  parta- 
kers of  the  benefit,"  1  Tim.  vi,  2.  "  And  ye,  masters, 
do  the  same  things  unto  tliem  ;  forbearing  threatening, 
knowing  that  your  Master  also  is  in  heaven,  neither  is 


POWERFUL     MOTIVES    TO    HOLINESS.  109 

there  respect  of  persons  with  him,"  Eph.  vi.  9.  "  Give 
unto  your  servants  that  wliich  is  just  and  equal,"  Col. 
iv.  1.  "Honour  all  men,  love  the  brotherhood,  fear 
God,  honour  tlie  king,"  1  Pet.  ii.  17.  "Render  to  all 
their  dues,  tribute  to  whom  tribute  is  due,  custom  to 
whom  custom,  fear  to  whom  fear,  honour  to  whom 
honour.  Owe  no  man  any  thing-,  but  to  love  one  an- 
other," Rom.  xiii.  7,  8. 

In  such  a  course  of  piety  and  holiness,  the  disciples 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  are  directed  to  persevere  till  death. 
"  Be  ye  stcdfast,  unmoveable,  always  abounding  in 
the  work  of  the  Lord,  forasmuch  as  ye  know  that 
your  labour  is  not  in  vain  in  the  Lord,"  1  Cor.  xv.  58. 
*'  Let  us  not  be  weary  in  well-doing,  for  in  due  sea- 
son we  shall  reap  if  we  faint  not,"  Gal.  vi.  9.  "Be 
thou  faithful  unto  death,  and  I  will  give  thee  a  crown 
of  life,"  Rev.  ii.  10. 

5.  The  motives  by  which  Christianity  enforces  obe- 
dience to  its  pure  and  holy  precepts,  are  many  of  them 
peculiarly  its  own,  and  all  of  them  of  the  most  eleva- 
ting or  weighty  kind.  Its  principal  motives  are  grati- 
tude and  love,  for  the  enjoyment  of  blessings  of  incal- 
culable worth,  and  hopes  bright  with  immortal  glory. 
That  man  is  a  fallen,  guilty,  and  depraved  creature  is 
so  visible,  that  even  heathens  and  deists  have  acknow- 
ledged the  fact.  That  which  is  visible  on  this  subject 
even  to  heathens  Christianity  more  clearly  reveals  ;  it 
discovers  to  man  his  real  condition;  represents  him 
as  the  transgressor  of  a  divine  law,  which  is  holy,  just, 
and  good  ;  as  having  rebelled  against  God  to  an  awful 
degree,  Luke  xv.  Matt,  xviii.,  as  having  deserved  the 
wages  of  sin,  which  is  death,  Rom.  vi.  23.,  and  as 
standing  guilty,  condemned,  and  helpless  before  his 
God,  Rom.  iii.  9 — 19.  Christianity  points  to  the 
source  of  this  guilt,  the  depravity  of  a  fallen  nature, 
10 


110  POWERFUL    MOTIVES    TO    IIOLIXES. 

which  is  so  sinful,  that  mere  human  power  cannot 
change  it.  To  (juahfy  any  one  for  celestial  happiness, 
he  must  be  renewed  in  the  spirit  of  his  mind ;  be 
*'  born  again,"  be  "  born  of  God,"  John  iii.  5,  i.  12, 
13.  To  man,  thus  fallen  and  guilty,  Christianity  pro- 
claims that  wonder  of  wonders,  the  incarnation  of  the 
Son  of  God.  It  declares,  "  God  so  loved  the  world, 
that  he  gave  his  only-begotten  Son,  that  whosoever 
believeth  in  him  should  not  perish,  but  have  everlast- 
ing life,"  John  iii.  16.  "  Herein  is  love,  not  that  wc 
loved  God,  but  that  he  loved  us,  and  sent  his  Son  to 
be  the  propitiation  for  our  sins.  And  we  have  seen 
and  do  testify  that  the  Father  sent  the  Son  to  be  the 
Saviour  of  the  world,"  1  John  iv.  10.  14.  The  Lord 
Jesus  having  thus  appeared  as  "  God  manifest  in  the 
flesh,"  is  declared  by  his  sufferings  and  death  to  have 
atoned  for  the  sins  of  men.  "  He  was  wounded  for 
our  transgressions,  he  was  bruised  for  our  iniquities  : 
the  chastisement  of  our  peace  was  upon  him  ;  and  with 
his  stripes  we  are  healed,"  Isa.  liii.  5.  "  He  hath  ap- 
peared to  put  away  sin  by  the  sacrifice  of  himself. 
Christ  was  once  offered  to  bear  the  sins  of  many," 
Heb.  ix.  26.  28.  The  Lord  Jesus  is  further  represent- 
ed as  having  ascended  to  heaven,  and  as  there  inter- 
ceding for  all  that  come  to  him:  "Seeing  then  that 
we  have  a  great  High-priest,  that  is  passed  into  the 
heavens,  Jesus  the  Son  of  God,  let  us  hold  fast  our 
profession,"  Heb.  iv.  14.  "  He  is  able  to  save  them 
to  the  uttermost  that  come  unto  God  by  him,  seeing 
he  ever  livcth  to  make  intercession  for  them,"  Heb. 
vii.  25. 

The  Christian  is  represented  as  under  the  greatest 
obligations  to  this  adorable  Saviour,  and  as  sensible 
of  tho«e  obligations. 

*'  When  we  were  yet  without  strength, — while  we 


POWERFUL    MOTIVES    TO    HOLINESS.  Ill 

were  yet  sinners,  Christ  died  for  us,"  Rom.  v.  5.  7. 
"  When  we  were  enemies,  w«  were  reconciled  to  God 
by  the  death  of  his  Son.  Much  more,  being  reconciled, 
we  shall  be  saved  by  his  life,"  Rom.  v.  10.  "  Clirist 
hath  redeemed  us  from  the  curse  of  the  law,  being 
made  a  curse  for  us,"  Gal.  iii.  13.  "Jesus  dcHvered  us 
from  the  wrath  to  come,"  1  Thess.  i.  10.  "  Blessed 
be  the  God  and  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who 
hath  blessed  us  with  all  spiritual  blessings  in  heavenly 
places  in  Christ ;  he  hath  made  us  accepted  in  the  be- 
loved. We  have  redemption  through  his  blood,  the 
forgiveness  of  sins,  according  to  the  riches  of  his 
grace,"  Eph.  i.  3.  6,  7.  "  Ye  know  the  grace  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that,  though  he  was  rich,  yet  for 
your  sakes  he  became  poor,  that  ye  through  his  pov- 
erty might  be  rich,"  2  Cor.  viii.  9.  "  The  great  God 
and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ ;  who  o-ave  himself  for 
us,  that  he  might  redeem  us  from  all  iniquity,  and 
purify  unto  himself  a  peculiar  people,  zealous  of  good 
works,"  Tit.  ii.  13,  14.  "Being  justified  by  faith,  we 
have  peace  with  God  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ ; 
b)'  whom  also  we  have  access  by  faith  into  this  grace 
wherein  we  stand,  and  rejoice  in  hope  of  the  glory  of 
God.  Being  now  justified  by  his  blood,  we  shall  be 
saved  from  wrath  through  him,"  Rom.  v.  1,  2.  9. 
"  Ye  know  that  ye  were  not  redeemed  with  corruptible 
things,  as  silver  and  gold,  from  your  vain  conversa- 
tion received  by  tradition  from  your  fathers :  but  with 
the  precious  blood  of  Christ,  as  of  a  lamb  without 
blemish  and  without  spot:  who  his  own  self  bare  our 
sins  in  his  own  body  on  the  tree,  that  we,  being  dead 
lo  sins,  should  live  unto  righteousness:  by  whose 
stripes  ye  were  healed.  For  ye  were  as  sheep  going 
astray ;  but  are  now  returned  unto  the  Shepherd  and 
Bishop  of  your  souls."     1   Pet.  i.  18,  19.  ii.  ^,  25. 


112  POWERFUL    MOTIIES    TO    HOLINESS. 

"  Unto  Him  that  loved  us,  and  washed  us  from  our 
sins  in  his  own  bloody  and  hath  made  us  kings  and 
priests  unto  God  and  his  Father;  to  him  be  glory  and 
dominion  for  ever  and  ever.  And  they  sung  a  new 
song,  saying.  Thou  art  worthy,  for  thou  wast  slain 
and  hast  redeemed  us  to  God  by  thy  blood,  out  of 
every  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people,  and  nation," 
Rev.  i.  5,  0.  V.  9.  "  To  all  who  become  partakers  of 
the  blessings  of  redeeming  love,  eternal  good  is  prom- 
ised :  "  Where  I  am  there  shall  also  my  servant  be," 
John  xii.  "  Tlie  King  shall  say  to  them  on  his  right 
hand,  Come  ye  blessed  of  my  Father  inherit  the  king- 
dom prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation  of  the  world." 
The  righteous  shall  go  away  "into  life  eternal,"  Matt. 
XXV.  34.  46.  "  So  shall  we  ever  be  with  the  Lord,"  1 
Thess.  iv.  17. 

True  Christians  are  thus  described,  not  as  merely 
anticipating,  but  as  actually  possessing  blessings  of  in- 
estimable value.  They  are  reconciled  to  God,  are  re- 
deemed from  the  curse,  are  delivered  from  the  wrath 
to  come ;  have  redemption  and  the  forgiveness  of 
sins ;  are  blessed  with  all  spiritual  blessings,  are  brought 
nigh  to  God,  have  access  to  him,  and  belong  to  his 
household  ;  are  delivered  from  the  power  of  darkness, 
and  are  translated  into  the  kingdom  of  Jesus.  And  all 
this  multitude  of  blessings  flows  from  no  superiority 
or  virtue  of  theirs,  nor  from  the  mere  mercy  of  their 
God,  but  all  is  enjoyed  through  the  blessed  Jesus. 
Are  they  reconciled  to  God?  it  is  through  his  death. 
Have  they  peace  with  God?  He  made  it  through 
the  blood  of  his  cross.  Have  they  redemption?  it 
is  through  his  blood.'  Are  they  delivered  from 
this  present  evil  world  ?  He  gave  himself  for  their 
deliverance.  Have  they  received  the  atonement?  it 
is  through  the  Lord  Jesus.     Are  their  sins  forj^iven? 


POWERFUL    MOTIVES    TO    HOLINESS.  113 

He  is  their  propitiation.  Are  they  delivered  from  the 
curse  of  the  law  ?  lie  was  made  a  curse  for  them. 
Are  they  saved  from  the  wrath  to  come?  He  died  and 
delivered  them.  Are  they  rich?  it  is  through  his 
poverty.  Are  they  made  divinely  righteous?  He  was 
made  a  sin-offering  to  render  them  so.  Are  they  made 
nigh  to  God?  it  is  by  the  blood  of  Christ.  Have  they 
all  spiritual  blessings  ?  they  have  them  in  him.  His 
atoning  blood  is  the  foundation  of  their  hopes:  in 
short,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  is  their  "  all  in  all." 

All  the  blessings  which  the  Christian  is  thus  de- 
clared to  possess  are  represented  as  originating  in  the 
Father's  love,  though  flowing  to  the  soul  through  the 
sufterings  and  mediation  of  the  Son.  The  Christian 
is  also  described  as  unspeakably  indebted  to  the  Holy 
Spirit,  for  blesings  of  the  greatest  value.  The  follow- 
ers of  Christ  are  represented  as  "born  of  the  Spirit," 
John  iii.  5,  &c.,  as  "  abounding  in  hope  through  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,"  Rom.  xv.  13.  as  having 
*'  the  love  of  God  shed  abroad  in  "  their  "hearts  by  the 
Holy  Ghost  given  unto  them,"  Rom.  v.  5.  "The  Spirit 
w  itnesses  with  their  spirit  that  they  are  the  children  of 
God,"  Rom.  viii.  15.  Through  the  Spirit  they  "mor- 
tify the  deeds  of  the  body,"  Rom.  viii.  13.  The  Spir- 
it helps  their  infirmities,  Rom.  viii.  26,  and  under  his 
influence  every  heavenly  grace  is  produced ;  "The 
fruit  of  the  Spirit  is  love,  joy,  peace,  long-suflering, 
gentleness,  goodness,  faith,  meekness,  temperance ; 
against  such  there  is  no  law.  And  they  that  are 
Christ's  have  crucified  the  flesh  with  the  aflections 
and  lusts,"  Gal.  v,  22—24. 

The  practical  effect  of  these  truths  upon  those  that 

really  enter  into  them  is  very  great.     What  should  be 

the  feelino-s,  what  the  lanouag-e  of  the  Christian  who 

views  himself  and  his  condition  rightly  ?     "  Father," 

10* 


114  EFFECTS    PRODUCED. 

he  can  exclaim,  "nothing  that  I  have  is  mine;  for  I 
forfeited  all,  and  lost  myself.  Sin  undid  me,  guilt  lay 
heavily  on  my  soul.  Behind  me  were  years  of  sin,  be- 
fore me  endless  ruin  and  the  gloom  of  eternal  night. 
I  lay  a  helpless,  ruined  wretch,  justly  condemned  to 
death  and  hell,  and  as  able  to  pluck  the  sun  from  the 
firmament  as  to  blot  out  my  crimes,  or  to  set  aside 
the  sentence  of  deserved  condemnation.  I  had  lost 
thy  favour.  I  had  lost  the  love  of  all  the  inhabitants 
of  Heaven.  I  had  no  claim  upon  its  smallest  bless- 
ing; nothing  was  mine,  but  guilt  and  condemnation ; 
nothing  awaited  me  but  death  and  damnation.  With- 
out one  gleam  of  hope,  one  possibility  of  escape,  my  all 
forfeited,  myall  lost,  I  was  hastening  to  eternal  night. 
Then  didst  thou  interpose.  Then  did  thy  Son  bleed 
and  atone  for  me,  and  now  I  live.  No  sentence  of 
death  hangs  over  me ;  thou  hast  given  me  more  than 
a  reprieve,  a  gracious  pardon.  No  condemning  law 
now  demands  the  punishment  of  my  soul,  and  dooms 
that  soul  to  death  and  hell ;  thou  hast  turned  its  threat- 
ening curse  aside.  Not  only  hast  thou  given  me  a  par- 
don, but  given  thy  Spirit  to  renew  my  nature  ;  to  form 
in  me  a  holy  disposition,  and  to  train  me  for  the  holi- 
ness and  happiness  of  Heaven.  I  live,  pardoned  and 
saved,  a  brand  snatched  from  the  burning  ;  but  whose 
am  I  ?  not  my  own.  The  blood  which  ransomed  me 
when  I  had  lost  my  all,  bought  all  I  now  possess,  and 
all  I  am.  My  claim  to  every  good  was  quite  extin- 
guished ;  but  thoLi,  who  hast  ransomed  me  from  death, 
hast  a  just  claim  on  all  I  am  and  all  I  have.  Thou  art 
my  Redeemer,  and  thou  hast  a  right  to  me;  thou  hast 
had  compassion  on  my  body  and  my  soul ;  I  am  thy 
property,  and  while  I  live  would  live  to  thee.  O  let 
me  live  the  life  which  such  obligations  demand !  Live 


EFFECTS    PRODUCED.  115 

as  not  my  own  but  thine !  live  as  having  notliiiijr  but 
wliat  is  thine!" 

G.  Were  the  principles  inculcated,  and  the  precepts 
given  by  Christianity,  brought  hito  universal  action, 
how  vast,  how  gloVious  a  change  would  the  world  ex- 
hibit! the  earth  would  become  a  paradise,  in  Avhich 
man  would  walk  with  God.  The  inhabitants  of  Heaven 
might  almost  mingle  with  the  family  of  man ;  or,  if  they 
did  not  visit  this  world,  would  still  behold  on  the  earth, 
an  immense  multitude  ripening  to  be  their  companions 
in  the  regions  of  eternal  day.  In  all  the  millions  of 
mankind  Jiot  one  child  of  perdition  would  be  found. 
Man,  no  longer  alienated  from  God,  would  cease  to 
adore  the  beasts  of  the  field,  the  reptiles  of  the  dust, 
the  birds  of  the  air,  the  fishes  of  the  sea,  rivers,  plants, 
dead  profligates,  and  demons.  The  Eternal  would  no 
longer  be  robbed  of  his  honour;  and  see  that  worship 
which  belongs  only  to  himself,  paid  to  blocks  of  stone, 
and  logs  of  wood,  and  disgusthig  images  of  clay.  Nor 
any  longer  would  there  be  cause  for  that  severe,  but 
just  sarcasm, 

"Be  heaven  and  earth  ainaz'd  !  't  is  hard  to  say, 
Which  are  more  stupid — or  their  gods  or  they  !" 

No  longer  would  man  rival  fallen  angels  in  wickedness, 
by  rejecting  the  God  of  Heaven  and  earth,  and  choos- 
ing in  his  place  a  log  of  wood,  or  a  stone,  or  a  beast, 
or  a  demon. 

The  deserted  heathen  temples  would  moulder  into 
ruins ;  and  not  one  worshipper  be  left  to  the  idols,  which 
infatuated  millions  now  adore  ;  no  human  victim  would 
die  upon  the  altars  of  heathenism  ;  no  pagan  priests,  de- 
ceiving and  deceived,  act  as  prime  ministers  of  Satan ; 
no  parents  would  offer  their  infants  in  sacrifice  to  the 
Molochs  of  modern  times.  The  tiger  would  lose  his 
worshippers  in  Dahomy;  and  the  snake  and  the  alii- 


116  EFFECTS    PRODUCED    BY    CHRISTIANITY. 

gator  and  the  hyena  tlicirs,  and  the  serpent  his  in  India, 
and  devils  theirs  in  Ceylon.  The  system  of  Buddhu 
would  no  longer  make  the  millions  of  Burma  and  China 
not  merely  idolaters  but  atheists.  On  the  wide  earth 
not  an  atheist  would  be  found.  Not  an  idol  would  be 
known,  unless  preserved  as  a  memorial  of  the  sin  and 
folly  of  departed  ages. 

Then,  too,  the  moral  evils  that  ravage  this  world 
would  cease  to  exert  their  baneful  power;  and  with  them 
many  natural  evils  also  would  depart.  Those  precepts 
of  Christianity,  which  have  been  adduced  in  this  chap- 
ter if  universally  obeyed,  would  drive  them  from  the 
dwelHngs  of  man.  The  plagues  of  lust  and  cruelty, 
of  avarice  and  selfishness,  of  falsehood  and  injustice, 
would  vanish,  like  the  gloom  of  night,  before  the  radi- 
ance of  the  dawningsun.  Repentance  would  fill  every 
heart  with  abhorrence  of  iniquity  in  all  its  forms.  No 
longer  would  lewdness,  like  a  malignant  pest,  spread 
around  desolation,  and  misery,  and  woe.  No  seducer 
would  exist.  No  young  female  would  mourn  her  peace 
and  honour  lost ;  no  abandoned  woman  would  be  found 
in  all  the  world.  The  numerous  crimes  which  impurity 
commits  would  no  longer  pollute  the  earth,  and  make 
it  "  sicken  and  groan  beneath  the  load  of  human  guilt." 
Let  Christian  instruction  be  universally  obeyed,  and 
drunkenness  and  intemperance  would  that  moment 
vanish  ;  the  drunkard's  song  would  be  unheard,  and 
a  midnight  revel  unknown.  No  longer  would  graves 
be  filled  with  the  victims  of  gluttony  and  drunkenness, 
nor  families  be  clothed  in  rags,  and  pining  in  hunger, 
for  want  of  what  a  savage  parent  spends  on  intoxication. 
Violence  would  no  more  be  witnessed  upon  earth.  No 
heart  would  burn  with  anger  or  revenge  ;  no  breast 
rankle  with  envy  or  malice  ;  no  eye  flame  with  rage  ;  no 
countenance  be  distorted  with  fury ;  but  meekness  and 


EFFECTS    PRODUCED    BY    CHRISTIANITY.  117 

gentleness  universally  prevail.  Man  would  have  no 
enemy  to  injury  him,  no  injuries  to  revenge  ;  or  if  un- 
awares an  injury  were  connnittcd,  tlie  only  return 
would  be  good  for  evil.  The  traveller  might  wander 
from  Britain  to  Japan,  and  neither  find  nor  fear  an  en- 
emy ;  and  at  midnight  might  travel  alone  as  securely 
and  fearlessly  through  dreary  solitudQS  as  he  would  do 
in  the  midst  of  companions  in  the  blaze  of  day.  Op- 
pression would  no  longer  exist ;  the  poor  man  in  his 
cottage  would  be  as  free  from  its  assaults,  as  the  king 
upon  his  throne.  The  sun  in  its  journey  round  the 
earth  would  not  behold  one  murderer  there.  War, 
that  system  of  legalized  murder,  would  be  for  ever 
banished  from  this  world,  which  it  has  drenched  with 
blood ;  no  widows  would  mourn  their  husbands  mur- 
dered in  war;  no  orphans  lament  the  death  of  parents, 
snatched  away  by  the  cruel  sword  ;  nor  aged  parents 
go  sorrowing  to  the  grave  for  children  thus  destroyed. 
Did  Christianity  universally  prevail,  another  life  would 
never  be  forfeited  ;  the  blood  of  another  victim  would 
never  be  shed ;  another  murder  would  never  be  com- 
mitted ;  another  sword  would  never  be  drawn.  With 
war  would  vanish  the  evils  in  its  train  ;  the  famines  it 
occasions,  the  pestilences  it  generates,  the  oppressive 
weight  of  taxes  that  grinds  nations  to  the  dust.  Chris- 
tianity, universally  embraced,  would  turn  swords  into 
plough-shares,  and  spears  into  pruning-hooks ;  would 
disband  hostile  armies,  annihilate  ships  of  war  and 
instruments  of  destruction  ;  would  leave  towers  and 
fortifications  to  crumble  into  ruins,  unheeded  and  un- 
valued ;  and  make  the  nations  of  the  earth  as  safe 
without  one  spear,  or  shield,  or  sword,  as  are  the  in- 
habitants of  heaven  itself. 

Dishonesty,  and  all  the  evils  it  occasions,   would 
take  their  everlasting  flight;  no  lightweights  or  short 


118  EFFECTS    PRODUCED    BY    CHRISTIANITY. 

measures  would  deceive  and  rob  the  unsuspecting;  no 
more  would  there  be  lawful  debts  unpaid,  no  borrow- 
ing without  repaying ;  no  hard  bargains,  no  exaction  ; 
no  fraudulent  debtor  would  cheat  his  creditor;  no 
griping  miser  hoard  up  his  useless  store.  No  dishonest 
servant  would  pilfer  his  employer's  property,  or  re- 
ceive wages  which,  through  idleness  and  inattention, 
he  had  not  earned.  No  unkind  master  would  oppress 
his  dependents ;  the  rich  would  not  withhold  any  part 
of  the  remuneration  which  the  poor  man's  labours  de- 
serve. An  extortioner  in  any  of  these,  or  in  the  thou- 
sand ways  in  which  men  become  extortioners,  would 
be  unknown  ;  nor  would  one  thief  exist  in  all  the  na- 
tions of  the  earth.  No  robber  would  ever  molest  the 
traveller,  no  plunderer  disturb  the  sleeping  flock  ;  the 
fruits  of  the  orchard  or  the  field  would  be  untouched 
by  a  dishonest  hand.  Houses  would  need  no  locks, 
no  bolts,  no  bars  ;  the  most  lonely  dwelling  would  be 
perfectly  secure,  and  its  inhabitants  rest  as  safely  and 
sweetly  beneath  the  shades  of  night  as  a  babe  upon  its 
mother's  breast.  No  poor  negro  stolen  from  his  coun- 
try would  lament  friends  and  liberty  for  ever  lost ;  a 
slave  would  not  exist,  nor  a  slave-dealer  or  slave-owner 
be  found  upon  earth. 

Were  attention  to  the  precepts  of  Christianity  uni- 
versal and  perfect,  a  host  of  other  evils  that  now 
haunt  the  dwellings  of  man  M^ould  be  no  more.  Self- 
ishness leads  legions  of  evils  in  its  train,  but  this  would 
die;  and  with  it  the  contentions,  the  ambition,  the 
pride,  the  cruelty  which  it  produces.  The  haughty 
look,  the  sneer,  the  contempt  of  pride  would  be  un- 
known. The  great  would  be  respected,  not  for  worth- 
less show,  but  for  real  greatness,  eminence  in  piety 
and  benevolence.  The  eye  of  scorn  would  no  longer 
turn  contemptuously  on  the  poor.     No  false  philosopher 


EFFECTS    PRODUCED    BY    CHRISTIANITY  119 

would  seek  applause  by  cobweb  systems,  spun  out  to 
deceive  and  undo  the  fools  that  admire  them  ;  no  young 
men  would  be  self-conceited  ;  the  blooming  damsel,  no 
longer  proud  of  fading  charms,  would  become  more 
lovely,  while  prizing  charms  which  cannot  fade.  The 
poor  would  not  survey  their  superiors  with  discontent, 
nor  envy  those  whom  Providence  had  placed  in  higher 
stations  than  their  own.  Scandal  would  no  more  black- 
en the  reputation  of  the  innocent ;  no  tale  bearer,  with 
a  tongue  set  on  fire  of  hell,  would  spread  discord  and 
strife  through  a  circle,  that  else  might  dwell  in  peace. 
Lying,  the  source  of  innumerable  evils,  would  cease. 
Neither  in  public  nor  private  life  can  a  course  of  sin 
subsist  without  deceit;  the  seducer  prevails  by  lying; 
by  this  the  debtor  cheats  his  creditor.  By  lying,  na- 
tions mislead  and  ruin  each  other ;  by  lying,  impostors 
deceive  the  charitable ;  and  by  fictitious  tales  of  woe 
obtain  that  aid,  which,  but  for  this  deceit,  would  be 
employed  in  relieving  real  misery.  But,  were  the 
precepts  of  the  Gospel  universally  obeyed,  not  a  lie 
would  be  uttered,  nor  a  liar  found  in  all  the  habitations 
of  men.  Perjury  would  then  vanish  ;  oaths  would  not 
be  needed,  for  every  lip  would  be  the  lip  of  truth.  No 
profaneness,  no  cursing,  no  foolish  talking,  no  corrupt 
communication  would  wound  the  ear,  or  pain  or  pol- 
lute the  heart. 

The  evils  that  occasion  the  bitterest  sorrows  of  do- 
mestic life  \vould  all  cease  ;  brothers  and  sisters  would 
dwell  together,  strangers  to  contention  and  strife.  No 
disobedient  son,  no  undutiful  daughter,  no  unkind  hus- 
band, no  jarring  wife,  would  be  seen  in  all  the  world. 

In  such  a  state  of  things  there  would  be  no  oppress- 
ive rulers,  no  unfaithful  subjects.  Judges  might  cease 
to  take  their  circuits,  and  to  occupy  the  hall  of  justice; 
there  would  be  no  criminals  to  try.     The  gibbet  would 


1*20  EFFECTS    PRODUCED    BV    CHRISTIANITY. 

be  no  longer  needed,  and  prisons  woidd  continue  with- 
out one  inhabitant  till  the  hand  of  time  levelled  them 
in  the  dust,  and  left  not  one  stone  upon  another.  Laws 
would  still  continue  in  force,  but  they  would  scarcely 
be  needed,  for  each  would  be  a  law  unto  himself. 

Could  a  system  that  aims  at  producing  such  effects 
come  from  any  source  but  God  ?  But  as  yet,  we  have 
contemplated  only  a  part  of  its  design.  This  divine 
religion  aims  at  the  introduction  of  much  positive  good. 
It  would  restore  to  God  the  place  he  ought  to  hold  in 
the  affections  of  his  creatures,  and  man  to  the  favour  and 
image  of  his  Maker.  If  all  were  brough  t  fully  under  its  in- 
fluence, every  heart  would  love  God  with  supreme  affec- 
tion. Every  tongue  would  praise  him.  The  black  man 
and  the  white,  the  inhabitants  of  China  and  of  Britain,  of 
Greenland  and  of  Chili,  would  unite  in  the  same  offering, 
and  exult  in  the  same  Father.  The  rising  sun  would  call 
every  human  being  to  communion  with  his  God ;  and 
through  the  silence  of  evening,  the  countless  aspirations 
of  these  countless  worshippers  would  ascend  to  heaven. 
The  sabbath  would  be  a  day  of  universal  rest,  anduni- 
veVsally  improved  would  cheer,  and  bless,  and  sanctify 
a  whole  world  travelling  together  to  a  sabbath  in  the 
skies.  The  whole  human  race  would  commence  in 
time  those  praises  which  would  be  carried  on  and  per- 
fected through  the  extent  of  eternity.  Every  one  would 
be  a  child  of  God,  a  member  of  his  family,  a  temple  of 
his  Spirit.  Man,  no  longer  indulging  a  will  of  his  own, 
would  make  his  heavenly  Father's  pleasure  his.  "  Thy 
will  be  done,"  would  be  a  universal  prayer ;  and  not 
the  formal  prayer  of  hypocritical  lips,  but  of  submissive 
and  devoted  hearts  :  and  what  would  be  that  world  in 
which  the  will  of  God  was  done  by  all,  and  done  in  all, 
and  done  as  it  is  done  in  heaven !  Submission  would 
lighten  pain  and  affliction  of  half  their  weight.     Instead 


EFFECTS    PRODUCED    BY    CHRISTIANITY.  121 

of  repiniuf]^,  tlic  siiftcrcr  would  feel  a  divine  calm  within 
while  resigning  his  all  to  the  will  of  his  God.  Stayed 
on  Him,  every  soul  would  be  kept  in  perfect  peace. 
No  distrust,  no  anxiety^  would  harass  the  happy  in- 
habitants of  the  world ;  but  each  would  confide  in  the 
care  of  an  almighty  Friend ;  and  in  the  darkest  hours 
each  would  rejoice  that, 

"  Behind  a  frowning  Providence, 
He  hides  u  smiling  lace." 

All  would  act  as  in  his  sight,  and  endure  as  seeing 
Him,  who,  though  invisible,  is  the  Searcher  of  hearts. 
Every  mercy  would  be  received  as  a  gift  of  his  bounty  ; 
and  enjoyed  not  for  its  value  only,  but  as  a  token  of  a 
Father's  love.  Every  affliction  would  be  considered 
as  a  chastisement  inflicted  by  his  hand.  Man's  chief 
concern  would  be  his  Maker's  glory ;  and  his  only  am- 
bition to  receive,  in  the  day  of  eternal  judgment,  the 
approbation  of  his  God.  The  daily  mercies  of  Provi-* 
dence  would  call  forth  unfeigned  gratitude,  and  the 
wonders  of  redeeming  love  would  universally  excite 
admiration,  thankfulness,  and  praise.  That  glorious 
person  whose  life  redeemed  a  world,  would  be  trusted 
by  all  and  loved  by  all.  In  Him  all  would  glory,  and 
he  would  be  imitated  by  all.  Even  deists  have  extol- 
led the  character  of  Christ.     Chubb  says, 

"  In  Christ  we  have  an  example  of  a  quiet  and  peace- 
able spirit ;  of  a  becoming  modesty  and  sobriety  ;  just 
and  honest,  upright  and  sincere ;  and,  above  all,  of  a 
most  gracious  and  benevolent  temper.  His  life  was  a 
beautiful  picture  of  human  nature,  when  in  its  native 
purity  and  simphcity;  and  showed  at  once  what  excel- 
lent creatures  men  Avould  be  when  under  the  influence 
and  power  of  that  Gospel  he  preached  unto  them." 

Rousseau  exclaims,  "  What  sweetness,  what  purity 
in  his  manners !  what  affecting  grace  in  his  instructions ! 
11 


122  EFFECTS    PRODUCED    BY    CHRISTIANITV. 

wliat  elevation  in  his  maxims  !  Aviiat  profound  wis- 
dom in  his  discourses  !  what  empire  over  his  passions  ! 
Yes,  if  the  life  and  death  of  Socrates  are  those  of  a 
philosopher,  the  life  and  death  of  Jesus  Christ  are 
those  of  a  God  !" 

Were  Christianity  universal  in  its  influence,  this 
holy  life,  this  spotless  example,  this  life  not  of  a  phi- 
losopher, but  of  a  God,  is  that  which  all  would  strive 
to  copy ;  and  each  would  become  a  humble  represen- 
tation of  what  Jesus  was.  All  that  is  pure,  all  that  is 
lovely,  all  that  is  courteous,  would  be  sought  by  all. 
Like  him,  all  would  consider  themselves  as  strangers 
and  pilgrims  upon  earth,  and  would  live  and  act  as 
travellers  to  Heaven.  The  affections  of  none  would 
grovel  in  the  dust.  The  things  unseen  would  warm 
the  hearts,  and  engage  the  desires,  and  animate  the  zeal 
of  all.  Meekness  and  gentleness  would  diffuse  a  uni- 
versal charm,  and  dwell  in  every  house.  Rude  unkind- 
ness  and  rugged  tempers,  sullenness  and  obstinacy 
would  be  driven  from  the  abodes  of  men.  Humility 
would  lower  each  in  his  own  esteem,  and  exalt  him  in 
the  esteem  of  all  besides.  Contentment  would  recon- 
cile every  man  to  his  lot.  No  one  would  view  another 
as  his  rival ;  but  ambition  and  dissatisfaction  would  flee 
away.  Justice  would  govern  all  the  dealings  of  men. 
Temperance  would  possess  a  universal  reign.  The 
comforts  and  blessings  of  time  would  be  employed  for 
the  Giver's  glory.  Raiment  would  no  longer  be  pros- 
tituted as  fuel  to  pride.  Men  would  use  the  world 
without  abusing  it :  would  weep  as  though  they  wept 
not;  and  rejoice  as  though  they  rejoiced  not;  and  buy 
as  though  they  possessed  not.  In  such  a  renewed 
state  no  one  would  live  to  himself,  but  each  would 
seek  the  benefit  of  ail.  The  happiness  of  all  would 
be  the  concern  of  each,  and  the  happiness  of  each  the 


EFFECTS    PRODUCED    BY    CHRISTIANITY.  123 

concern  of  all.  The  comfortless  ^volll(l  be  cheered, 
the  hungry  fed,  the  naked  clothed,  the  sick  visited. 
The  mourner  would  every  where  find  a  comforter,  the 
widow  a  friend,  the  orphan  a  father.  Love  would  lead 
the  poor  to  rejoice  in  the  prosperity  of  the  rich,  and 
the  rich  to  minister  so  cheerfully  and  abundantly  to 
the  comfort  of  the  poor,  that  poverty  itself  would  wear 
a  smile.  *To  give  would  universally  be  esteemed  more 
blessed  than  to  receive.  Men  would  become  as  anxious 
to  give  as  they  now  are  to  gain,  and  then  would  part 
with  wealth  more  cheerfully  than  they  receive  it  now. 
In  every  land  the  traveller  would  find  himself  in  the 
midst  of  friends.  Love  would  diffuse  a  holy  calm 
through  every  breast,  would  render  every  house  the 
abode  of  tranquillity,  make  every  family  happy  in  each 
other,  and  the  world  itself  but  one  family ;  over  vil- 
lages, towns,  and  nations,  it  would  spread  a  serenity 
as  sweet  as  the  unruffled  calm  of  a  still  sabbath-even- 
ing on  a  summer's  day.  Rivers,  mountains,  and  seas 
would  divide  mankind  into  distinct  communities,  but 
not  divide  those  bands  of  love  that  would  knit  them 
all  into  one.  Every  husband  and  wife  now  truly  one, 
would  cheer,  and  help,  and  bless  each  other  with  mu- 
tual and  unmingled  kindness.  Every  parent  would 
train  his  children  up  for  heaven,  and  every  child  love, 
honour,  obey,  and  requite  his  parents.  Every  son 
would  make  a  glad  father,  and  every  daughter  a  happy 
mother.  Servants  would  regard  their  employers'  in- 
terests as  their  own  ;  and  masters  in  every  way  pro- 
mote their  servants'  welfare.  Rulers,  as  shepherds 
and  fathers,  with  parental  care  would  labour  for  the 
interests  of  the  happy  nations.  Subjects  would  uni- 
versally be  fiiithful  and  loving.  The  ministers  of  re- 
ligion would  be  in  reality  what  they  are  in  name ;  all 
taught  of  God,  and  all  with  pious  care,  would  lead  their 


124  EFFECTS    PRODUCED    BY    CHRISTIAXITY. 

flocks  forwartl  to  the  fold  in  heaven.  A  time-serving, 
time-wasting  preacher,  would  not  exist  among  the 
myriads  em{)loyed  as  ministers  of  the  sanctuary  ;  nor 
an  unkind,  discordant  Hock,  nor  a  lukewarm  Christian, 
nor  a  bigot,  nor  a  hypocrite.  Christians  would  form 
in  reality  but  one  church,  as  the  world  one  family. 
All  the  followers  of  Jesus  would  be  of  one  heart,  and 
one  soul,  and  all  the  world  would  be  his  followers. 
He  that  had  five  talents  would  improve  them  all,  and 
he  that  had  two,  and  he  that  had  one ;  and  all  would 
provoke  each  other  to  love  and  holiness.  To  the  aged, 
the  hoary  head  would  be  universally  as  a  crown  of 
glory.  Ripened  in  piety,  they  would  stand  as  pillars 
in  the  temple  of  God  below,  prepared  to  become  pil- 
lars in  his  temple  above.  The  young  w^ould  all  dis- 
play the  charms  of  early  piety.  They  would  attract 
the  love  of  earth  and  heaven;  and  render  religion  as 
lovely  in  youth  as  it  is  venerable  in  age.  And  in  the 
graces  and  duties  of  religion  all  would  aboimd,  and  all 
would  persevere,  till  called  from  this  world  to  a  man- 
sion in  the  skies.  Thus  earth  and  heaven  would  con- 
tain but  one  family,  and  God  the  Father  of  the  whole. 
The  prospect  of  eternal  life  would  gladden  every  heart, 
and  diffuse  through  the  whole  race  of  man  a  general 
joy.  What  a  world  !  How  changed  from  what  it  is  ! 
The  greater  part  of  the  evils  under  which  man  groans 
and  mourns,  would  be  banished  with  his  vices !  Yet 
not  all,  this  is  not  his  rest,  for  sin  has  polluted  the  earth. 
Sickness  and  death  would  still  remain.  Yet  sickness 
universally  would  be  lightened  of  its  heaviest  load. 
No  sick  bed  would  be  without  comfort  and  a  com- 
forter. The  consolations  of  the  Gospel  which  all  had 
loved,  would  cheer  the  dying  hours  of  all.  Death 
would  no  longer  be  the  king  of  terrors,  but  would  uni- 
versally wear  a  smile,  and  beside  the  grave  of  every 


CHRISTIANITY    IS    DIVINE.  125 

human  being  might  that  siihhme  anthem  be  sung,  "  O 
death,  wlun-e  is  thy  sting  ?  O  grave,  where  is  thy  vic- 
tory ?  Thanks  be  to  God  wlio  givcth  us  tlie  victory 
through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ?" 

These  are  the  effects  which  Christianity,  universally 
received  and  obeyed,  would  produce.  Is  it  a  cunning- 
ly-devised fable  ?  What  human  being  could  have  de- 
vised it  ?  Suppose  it  quite  banished  from  the  world, 
and  all  remembrance  of  it  forgotten,  who  could  devise 
such  another  ? 

7.  Christianity  is  either  from  Heaven  or  it  is  the  in- 
vention of  the  worst  and  most  wicked  of  men  ;  there 
is  no  medium.  This  proposition  admits  abundant  proof; 
if  Christianity  is  what  it  professes  to  be,  it  is  from 
Heaven :  a  system  of  truth  and  love,  of  which  God  him- 
self is  the  author ;  but  if  it  be  not  this,  it  is  the  most 
complete  system  of  imposture  that  ever  was  palmed 
upon  the  world.  The  most  complete,  for  other  false 
religions  have  had  so  much  in  them  quite  unworthy  of 
God,  as  to  prove  their  human  origin ;  but  this  is  not 
the  case  with  the  Christian  system.  The  wisest,  and 
holiest,  and  best  of  mankind  have  always  viewed  it  as 
divine.  If  Christianity  is  not  from  God,  it  is  not 
merely  a  complete  imposture,  but  the  invention  of  the 
w^orst  and  most  wicked  of  men.  Its  authors  professed 
that  it  was  from  God,  professed  to  work  miracles  in 
its  support,  and  lived  and  died  maintaining  that  it  was 
a  revelation  from  Heaven;  and  in  attestation  of  this, 
most  of  them  laid  down  their  own  lives.  But  if  it  were 
not  from  God,  this  was  all  base  forgery  and  impious 
falsehood.  They  lived  liars,  and  died  liars  ;  and  died 
martyrs  to  a  lie,  and  thus  in  fact  became  self-murder- 
ers. But  their  guilt  in  this  case  did  not  stop  here. — 
They  saw  multitudes  embracing  the  Gospel,  and  for 
it  suffering  persecution  and  death ;  yet  instead  of  now 
U* 


126  "    CHRISTIANITY    IS    DIVINE. 

coming  forward,  and  telling  them  not  to  suffer  for  a  fa- 
ble, they  encourage  them  to  bear  all  extremities,  and 
death  itself  rather  than  renounce  their  faith.  On  the 
supposition  that  they  knew  Christianity  to  be  from 
Heaven,  this  conduct  was  kind  and  consistent,  for  they 
knew  that  an  abundant  recompense  awaited  these  suf- 
ferers; but  if  the  apostles  knew  that  it  was  a  forgery, 
(and  if  it  were,  they  must  have  known  it,)  what  guilt 
or  cruelty  ever  equalled  that  of  encouraging  multitudes 
to  lay  down  even  life  itself  for  such  a  forgery  ?  of  spread- 
ing through  the  world  a  system  of  imposture  that  would 
occasion  the  ruin  and  death  of  multitudes,  break  up 
the  earthly  prosperity  of  many  fomilies,  and  bring  chil- 
dren and  parents  to  an  untimely  grave  ?  If  Christian- 
ity be  not  from  Heaven,  a  man  who  dies  ignominiously 
for  committing  a  single  murder,  would  be  innocent, 
compared  with  Paul  and  the  other  apostles  who  en- 
couraged thousands  to  lay  down  their  lives  for  what 
themselves  knew  to  be  a  mere  human  imposture  ?  It 
would  be  absurdity  itself  to  consider  the  apostles  as 
good,  but  deceived  men.  They  could  not  be  deceived. 
This  admits  of  irresistible  proof;  and  consequently 
they  were  either  the  best  and  most  favoured  of  men, 
or  the  worst  and  most  impious.  The  religion  they 
taught  either  came  from  Heaven,  and  they  were 
Heaven's  messengers  to  man,  or  it  was  the  production 
of  the  most  unfeeling  hearts,  of  the  most  hardened  liars, 
that  ever  trod  the  surface  of  the  earth.  Which  were 
they  ?  Let  the  system  answer.  It  has  been  shown  that 
were  Christianity  received  by  all,  and  fully  obeyed  by 
all,  there  would  not  be  idolator,  nor  an  idol,  nor  an  adul- 
terer, nor  a  debauchee,  nor  a  prostitute,  nor  a  thief, 
nor  a  miser,  nor  an  extortioner,  nor  a  drunkard,  nor  a 
glutton,  nor  a  murderer,  nor  war,  nor  revenge,  nor 
maHce,  nor  strife,  nor  hatred,  nor  a  lie,  nor  scandal,  nor 


CHRISTIANITY    IS    DIVINE.  127 

an  oppressor,  nor  a  slave,  nor  an  unfaithfnl  servant,  nor 
a  hard  master,  nor  an  unkind  parent,  nor  an  undutiful 
child,  nor  pride,  nor  profaneness,  nor  a  criminal,  nor 
a  prisoner,  "beneath  the  circuit  of  the  sun." 

But  instead  of  these  things,  all  would  love  God,  all 
would  trust  him,  all  would  obey  him.  The  world 
■would  be  Jiis  temple,  and  all  nations  his  family.  All 
would  copy  the  holy  example  of  the  holy  Jesus ;  all 
would  confide  in  him,  all  would  love  him ;  and  loving, 
imitate  him  ;  all  would  be  contented,  holy,  humble, 
meek,  peaceful,  gentle,  good,  patient,  honest,  just,  uni- 
ted, compassionate,  anxious  for  the  welfare  of  others, 
more  willing  to  give  than  to  receive  ;  tender-hearted, 
temperate,  courteous  ;  friends  to  the  friendless ;  fa- 
thers to  the  fatherless ;  bent  on  heaven,  and  improv- 
ing, for  the  honour  of  God  and  the  good  of  man,  their 
time  on  earth.  Every  husband  and  every  wife  would 
be  happy  in  each  other.  Every  child  dutiful,  and  every 
parent  affectionate ;  every  servant  faithful,  and  every 
master  just  and  kind.  The  whole  world  as  with  but 
one  heart,  one  soul,  one  object,  one  peaceful  way,  and 
one  happy  end;  and  all  leading  such  a  life  as  angels 
would  lead,  if  angels  dwelt  below. 

You  have  seen  that  if  the  apostles  were  not  the  mes- 
sengers of  Heaven,  they  were  the  worst,  the  most 
wicked,  the  most  false,  the  most  impious  of  men. 
Could  such  men  invent  such  a  system?  Could  all 
that  is  benevolent  come  from  an  unfeeling  heart  ?  All 
that  is  lovely  and  true,  and  that  would  change  this  me- 
lancholy world  into  a  paradise,  proceed  from  the  most 
abandoned  and  impious  impostors  ?  Would  it  not  be 
more  reasonable  to  expect  grapes  from  thorns,  or  figs 
from  thistles  ?  Would  it  not  be  more  possible  for  fire 
to  freeze  ?  and  ice  to  burn  ?  for  earthquakes  to  build  ? 
for  valcanoes  to  spread  plenty  ?  for  poison  to  nourish? 


128  THE    ARGUMENT    ILLUSTRATED. 

and  fomine  to  feed  starving  millions,  than  for  bad  men 
to  invent  such  a  system  ? 

Whence  then  did  Chriti'tianity  spring?  Not  from 
bad  men  ;  it  could  not  come  from  them.  It  must  then 
have  come  from  God ;  and  it  is  worthy  of  him.  It 
bears  its  Father's  lovely  image ;  and  in  its  likeness  to 
his  excellences,  shows  its  Author. 

8.  Perhaps  an  objection  already  glanced  at,  may  be 
started  to  the  preceding  argument,  respecting  the  ef- 
fects and  tendency  of  Christianity  ;  it  may  be  said,  that 
it  does  not  produce  in  its  professors  such  effects  as 
those  which  have  been  described.  To  this  it  is  suffi- 
cient to  reply,  that  the  question  is  not  what  professed 
Christians  are,  but  what  common  sense  must  judge  to 
be  the  tendency  of  Christianity,  by  examining  its  na- 
ture as  displayed  in  the  New-Testament.  Were  there 
not  a  Christian  on  earth,  this  would  remain  what  it  is. 
But  it  may  be  added,  that  with  the  generality  of  those 
who  are  called  Christians,  Christianity  has  no  concern. 
They  are  heathens  in  heart,  and  in  life,  though  Chris- 
tians in  name.  Of  those  who  make  a  more  express 
profession  of  Christianity,  some  are  hypocrites.  It  is 
not  responsible  for  their  vices.  Many  that  are  sincere, 
are  daily  mourning  their  own  defects,  and  lamenting 
that  they  fall  so  far  short  of  what  their  holy  religion 
requires.  Surely  Christianity  is  not  censurable  for 
what  its  imperfect  professors  declare  it  condemns. 
But,  after  all  the  deductions  that  may  thus  be  made, 
the  tendency  of  Christianity  is  unaltered.  The  holy 
lives  of  many  eminent  Christians  have  displayed  its 
power ;  and  in  numberless  instances  unknown  and  un- 
noticed by  the  world,  it  has  raised  to  holiness,  happi- 
ness, and  heaven,  the  sons  and  daughters  of  vice  and 
perdition.     It  has  been  said, 


EVIDENCE    OF    CHRISTIANITY.  129 

"Full  many  a  gem  of  purest  ray  serene, 
Tlie  dark  uiifatlionrj  caves  of  ocean  bear; 

Full  many  a  llower  is  born  to  blush  unseen, 
And  waste  its  sweetness  on  the  desert  air." 

Thus  Christian  piety  often  blooms  in  scenes  unnoticed 
by  the  busy  \vorltl ;  yet  though  it  blooms  unseen  by 
the  gay  multitude,  it  icastcs  no  sweetness.  Its  charms 
are  perceived,  its  influence  is  felt,  m  hile  its  obscure 
and  perhaps  poor  possessors  are  maturing  upon  earth 
for  a  dwelling  in  the  heavens. 

It  is  proper  further  to  observe,  upon  the  argument 
maintained  in  this  chapter,  that  there  is  nothing  in 
Christianity  to  counteract  its  divine  and  holy  tendency. 
In  the  system  of  Mahomet,  and  those  of  some  heathen 
philosophers,  some  good  appears,  but  so  much  evil  is 
mixed  with  it,  as  more  than  counterbalances  the  good, 
and  more  than  counteracts  all  the  effects  such  good 
principles  might  produce.  Compare  their  systems  to 
a  machine,  and  it  may  be  said  that  one  part  of  the  ma- 
chine obstructs  the  motions  of  the  other.  Instead  of 
moving  in  harmony,  one  wheel  counterworks  another 
wheel,  and  the  whole  machine  is  disordered,  and  no 
valuable  end  accomplished.  But  it  is  not  thus  with 
Christianity ;  every  wheel  acts  in  its  place,  every  move- 
ment plays  in  harmony.  No  one  precept  opposes  an- 
other precept ;  no  doctrine  counteracts  another  doc- 
trine ;  there  is  ncfthing  in  Christianity  itself  to  weaken 
the  influence  of  any  of  its  principles  or  precepts.  All 
act  together,  and  the  designed  result  is  the  greatest 
glory  to  God,  and  the  greatest  good  to  man.  It  is 
true,  human  corruption  opposes  a  powerful  obstacle 
to  the  tendency  of  Christianity ;  but  this  is  no  defect 
in  the  system  itself:  this  is  an  external,  not  an  internal 
obstacle  to  its  benevolent  design. 

9.  There  is  another  kind  of  internal  evidence  for  the 


130  EVIDENCE    OF    CHRISTIANITY. 

divinity  of  the  scriptures,  which  deserves  attention,  yet 
I  sliali  not  enlarge  upon  it :  and  though  it  is  very 
powerful,  unless  you  are  a  partaker  of  the  grace  of 
God,  you  will  not  correctly  discern  it.  It  may  be 
safely  and  confidently  asserted,  that  unconverted  men 
did  not  write  the  Scriptures,  for  they  could  not  write 
them.  The  views  given  in  the  Scriptures  of  human 
nature,  of  the  deceitfulness  and  depravity  of  the  heart, 
of  the  spiritual  conflicts  of  a  penitent  sinner,  or  the 
varying  experience  of  a  child  of  God,  are  such  as  no 
unconverted  man  could  describe,  for  he  never  had 
them.  The  world  ridicules  them  ;  the  wise  and  the 
learned  treat  them  as  enthusiasm  and  fanaticism.  But 
does  any  man  come  to  know  himself,  he  then  begins 
to  discern  that  no  mirror  more  truly  reflects  the  like- 
ness of  a  face,  than  the  Scriptures  do  the  image  of  his 
heart.  He  sees  now  that  this  book  describes  to  him 
what  he  is  ;  and  the  more  he  grows  in  self-acquaint- 
ance, the  more  exact  the  picture  seems.  He  can  say 
of  the  Scriptures,  "  Come,  see  a  book  which  tells  me 
all  that  ever  I  was,  and  shows  me  all  I  am.  Is  not  this 
from  Heaven  ?"  No  man,  unless  taught  of  God,  ever 
could  thus  describe  the  human  heart,  and  no  man,  un- 
less taught  of  God,  ever  will  see  that  the  description 
is  truth  itself.  Suppose  a  book  were  written,  delinea- 
ting, in  a  glowing  manner,  the  beauties  of  the  creation 
as  they  appear  to  the  eye.  Let  this  book  be  read  to  a 
man  born  blind,  what  ideas  would  he  gain  upon  the 
subject  ?  it  would  be  unintelligible  to  him.  Let  this 
man  have  sight  given  him,  then  let  him  survey  the 
creation,  and  afterwards  read  this  book,  it  would  be  a 
new  book  to  him  ;  he  would  understand  it  now.  He 
might  now  say,  He  who  wrote  this  book  was  not 
blind  ;  a  blind  man  could  not  possibly  have  written  it. 
He  describes  things  just  as  I  see  them.     What  was 


EXCELLENCY    OF    CHRISTIANITY.  131 

needful  to  write  this  book? — Sight.  What  was  need- 
ful to  understand  it?— Sight.  The  blind  could  not 
write  the  book,  nor  the  blind  understand  it.  Ap])ly 
this  to  the  present  subject:  a  man  blind  to  tlie  things 
of  God,  could  not  have  written  those  descrij)tions  of 
the  human  heart  and  religious  experience,  which  the 
Scriptures  contain  ;  nor  can  a  man  who  is  blind  to  the 
things  of  God,  gain  any  clear  knowledge  on  these  sub- 
jects, though  he  may  admit  them  in  speculation ;  but, 
if  tauglit  of  God,  if  his  blindness  be  removed,  all  be- 
comes clear :  he  sees  his  heart  described  in  the  Bible 
with  infallible  correctness  ;  and  thence  may  draw  the 
satisfactory  and  important  conclusion ;  Bad  men  could 
not  write  this  book  ;  those  who  wrote  it  must  be  what 
they  professed  themselves,  the  messengers  of  Heaven, 
and  the  religion  they  have  taught  must  be  divine. 


CHAPTER    V. 

THE    NECESSITY    OF    KEVELATION. 

1.  The  argument  insisted  on  in  the  preceding  chap- 
ter, is  in  itself  sufficiently  strong ;  for  whence,  except 
from  Heaven,  could  come  a  system  that  would  make 
this  distressed  and  wicked  world  a  paradise?  But  this 
argument  receives  additional  force,  if  we  contrast  Chris- 
tianity with  the  other  prevalent  religions  of  ancient  or 
modern  times;  and  with  the  avowed  opinions  of  pro- 
fessed philosophers,  either  ancient  or  modern.  What 
unassisted  reason  would  do  to  promote  the  religious 
welfare  of  man,  is  best  seen  in  what  it  has  done.  It 
may  be  useful  to  take  a  brief  survey  of  some  of  the 
more  prominent  parts  of  the  ancient  heathen  systems! 
and  of  the  conduct  and  principles  of  their  supporters. 
The  apostle  Paul,  in  the  first  chapter  of  the  Romans, 


132  EXCELLENCY    OF    CHRISTIANITY. 

has  described  them  in  a  correct  but  most  dreadful  man- 
ner. Is  his  dreadful  description  overstrained?  Is  his 
dark  picture  too  darkly  coloured?  Let  a  brief  state- 
ment of  facts  reply.*  Excepting  the  Jewish  nation, 
men  appear  universally  to  have  renounced  the  God  of 
Heaven.  The  Egyptians  supposed  the  su  and  moon 
to  be  the  "eternal  gods"  that  govern  the  whole  world. 
The  Phoenicians  accounted  the  sun  "  the  only  Lord  of 
heaven."  Plato  says,  that  the  ancient  Greeks  appear 
to  have  esteemed  the  sun,  moon,  earth,  stars,  and 
heaven,  to  be  the  only  gods.  When  the  Greeks  grew 
polite  and  learned,  they  still  worshipped  the  heavenly 
bodies.  Anaxagoras  w^as  accused  at  Athens  of  impiety 
for  affirming  the  stars  to  be  inanimate,  and  the  sun  a 
body  of  fire,  as  he  thus  denied  their  divinity.  Even 
the  much-extolled  Socrates  censured  him  for  presump- 
tion and  arrogance.  Plato  frequently  prescribes  the 
worship  of  the  stars,  which  seem  the  principal  divini- 
ties he  recommends  to  the  people.  Plutarch  speaks  of 
the  sun  and  moon  as  animate,  "  whom  all  men  worship, 
and  to  whom  they  offer  up  sacrifices  and  prayers." 
Pliny  says,  "It  is  reasonable  to  believe  that  this  world, 
and  heaven  which  encompasseth  and  governeth  all 
things,  is  God  eternal,  innnense,  and  which  was  never 
made,  and  shall  never  be  destroyed."  The  apostate 
emperor  Julian  speaks  of  the  sun  as  the  parent  of  man- 
kind, and  the  giver  of  all  good.  Macrobius,  another 
pagan  writer  w  ho  flourished  under  the  emperor  Theo- 
dosius,  says,  that  the  priests  used  this  prayer,  "  O  al- 

*  The  statements  contained  in  this  chapter  are  chiefly  collected  from  Le 
land's  invaluable  work  on  the  Necessity  of  Revelation.  Readers  who  wish  fa 
the  authorities  on  which  these  statements  are  made,  are  referred  to  that  work 
where  they  will  find  an  immense  body  of  evidence  proving  their  truth  :  au't 
many  statements  respecting  the  horrid  vices  of  ancient  heathens  which  were  too 
impure  uud  appalling  to  be  even  laeuiioned  here. 


EXCELLENCY    OF    CIIRISTL\NITY.  1»]3 

mighty  sun,  the  spirit  of  the  world,  the  power  of  tlio 
world,  the  light  of  the  world."  The  same  writer  states, 
that  the  Assyrians  worshijiped  the  sun  as  the  most  high 
God.  The  sun  was  the  chief  god  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Mexico  and  Peru;  and  was  adored,  under  the  name  of 
Bel,  by  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  Britain.  This  idol- 
atry, which  the  scriptures  call  the  worship  of  the  host 
of  heaven,  appears  to  have  overspread  the  world.*  An- 
other species  of  idolatry,  which  perhaps  in  a  greater  de- 
gree than  the  last,  deluged  the  world  with  abominations 
and  iniquity,  was  the  worship  of  dead,  and  often  of 
prolligate,  men. 

The  ancient  Phonnicians  and  Egyptians  rockoned 
those  among  the  greatest  gods  who  had  been  the  inven- 
tors of  useful  things.  The  greatest  gods  of  the  Romans, 
were  Jupiter,  Mars,  Mercury,  Neptune,  Vulcan,  and 
Apollo ;  and  the  goddesses  Juno,  Vesta,  Minerva,  Ceres, 
Diana,  Venus.  Cicero  expressly  says,  that  the  chief 
gods  of  the  nations  were  taken  from  among  men ;  and 
that  their  sepulchres  were  shown  in  Greece,  The 
conduct  of  many  of  these  gods  is  represented  by  their 
votaries  as  profligate  in  the  extreme.  A  man  who 
should  act  as  these  gods  are  represented  to  have  done, 
would  now  be  abhorred  or  even  hung  for  his  crimes. 
Besides  vices  not  proper  to  be  mentioned,  Mercury  is 
represented  as  a  thief.  Saturn  is  said  to  have  devour- 
ed his  own  children.  Vulcan  to  have  been  lamed  by 
being  tossed  out  of  heaven  by  Jupiter,  for  taking  part 
with  Juno,  when  she  and  he  were  quarrelling.  Tlic 
rest  of  the  rabble  of  their  gods  were  no  better.  In  short, 
*'  the  system  of  the  poetical  theology  was  full  of  the 
genealogies,  the  vices,  the  adulteries,  the  contentions  of 
their  gods.     These  things  were  acted  on  the  theatres, 

*  Leland'g  Advantage  and  Necessity  of  the  ChriBtiaa  Revelation,  p.  i.  c.  3. 

13 


184  EXCELLENCY    OP    CHRISTIANITY. 

with  the  applause  and  approbation  of  the  people.  These 
were  the  deities  to  wlioni  temples  and  altars  were  erect- 
ed, and  sacrifices  offered ;  to  whose  statues  they  paid  di- 
vine honours ;  and  whom  tlie  poets  sung  in  all  the  charms 
of  flowing  numbers."*  To  this  it  may  be  added,  that 
Augustir.e  observes  that  those  fables,  which  ascribe 
to  the  gods,  actions  that  none  but  the  vilest  men  could 
commit,  "  were  not  only  permitted  to  be  acted  on  the 
public  theatres,  and  heard  with  pleasure  there,  but  that 
they  were  regarded  as  things  pleasing  to  the  gods  them- 
selves, by  which  they  were  propitiated  and  rendered 
favourable."  Among  the  ancient,  as  well  as  among 
modern  heathens,  the  worship  of  evil  spirits  also  pre- 
vailed. The  Egyptians  worshipped  Tryphon,  whom 
they  esteemed  an  evil  power,  at  some  solemnities,  and 
cursed  him  at  others.  The  Persians  adored  Arimanus, 
believed  to  be  the  evil  principle.  Porphyry  represents 
evil  demons  as  the  authors  of  all  human  calamities, 
as  seducers  and  liars,  and  plainly  intimates  that  men 
generally  rendered  them  religious  worship. 

The  brute  and  vegetable  creation  also  became  ob- 
jects of  divine  worship.  The  Egyptians  paid  divine 
honours  to  the  ibis  and  ichneumon  ;  to  wolves,  lions, 
crocodiles,  dogs,  cats,  the  cow,  the  bull,  the  goat,  the 
sheep,  the  hawk,  and  many  other  animals  both  terres- 
trial and  aquatic.  They  are  also  charged  with  wor- 
shipping onions,  garlic,  &c. ;  and  Juvenal  derides  them 
with  having  their  gods  growing  in  their  gardens.  The 
Chaldeans  adored  fire.  The  Athenians  and  others,  im- 
ages. Stilpo,  a  philosopher,  was  banished  from  Ath- 
ens, by  the  tribunal  of  Areopagus,  for  saying  that  a 
statue  of  Minerva,  which  Phidias  the  sculptor  made, 
was  not  a  god.     Divinity  was  ascribed  to  whatever 

*  Leland,  p.  ICC.   lb.  p.  17G.   lb.  pp.  150—153. 


NATURE  OF  HEATHEN  WORSHIP.        135 

Avas  useful  in  life.  Teniplcs  were  erected  lo  iniiu], 
faith,  virtue,  honour,  concord,  liealtli,  victory,  liherty; 
also  to  Fever,  to  Volupia,  as  the  goddess  of  jdeasure, 
&.C.  The  Romans  also  built  an  altar  to  evil  fortune, 
and  deified  tempests.  The  Athenians  erected  a  temple 
to  contumely  and  impudence.  On  the  whole,  there 
was  scarcely  anything  in  nature  so  vile,  or  so  foolish, 
as  not  to  he  worshipped  as  a  god,  by  some  or  other  of 
the  heathens.* 

2.  The  religious  M^orship  paid  these  idols  was  in 
many  cases  cruel  and  bloody,  or  impure,  to  a  degree 
which  decency  forbids  expressing.  Human  sacrifices 
Mere  generally  prevalent.  The  Syrians,  Arabians, 
Phoenicians,  Carthaginians,  Gauls,  Germans,  Britons, 
Greeks,  Romans,  and  other  nations  united  in  these 
murderous  rites.  The  Cartliaginians,  on  one  occa- 
sion, offered  200  children  belonging  to  some  of  the 
principal  families  to  Moloch,  or  Saturn. f 

Other  most  cruel  rites  were  practised  by  different 
pagans ;  and  by  those  very  nations  whom  children  and 
youth  are  absurdly  and  unchristianly  taught  to  admire. 
Baal's  priests  slashed  themselves  with  knives.  This 
too  was  done  in  the  worship  of  Isis.  At  one  of  the 
festivals  of  Bacchus,  his  priests  tore  and  devoured  the 
raw  and  reeking  entrails  of  goats.  In  the  processions 
of  Cybele,  the  previously  mangled  priests  made  hideous 
bowlings,  and  cut  themselves  till  the  blood  guslicd. 
This  worship  was  part  of  the  public  religion  of  ad- 
mired Rome.  At  Sparta  boys  were  frequently  whipped 
to  death  on  the  altar  of  Diana ;  and  Potter  says,  that 
Bacchus  had  an  altar  in  Arcadia,  where  a  great  many 
young  damsels  were  beaten  to  death  with  rods.  On 
the  impurity  of  paganism,  Leland  observes, 

*  Leland,  p.  L  c.  5.  t  lb.  v.  i.  p.  187,  &c. 


136 


NATURE  OF  HEATHEN  WORSHIP. 


"  As  some  of  the  heathen  rites  were  cruel  and  in- 
human, others  were  no  less  remarkable  for  all  manner 
of  licentiousness.  Many  of  their  rites  were  indecent 
and  impure."  To  such  an  extent  was  this  the  case, 
that  the  most  shameless  wickedness  not  merely  was 
practised  by  the  worshippers,  but  constituted  a  part  of 
the  worship.  This  was  the  case  in  various  Greek  and 
Roman  rites.  The  Greeks  had  a  goddess  of  wanton- 
ness, and  one  temple  at  Corinth,  with  which  were  con- 
nected a  thousand  women  of  abandoned  character.  In 
fact,  various  shocking  abominations  made  a  part  of  the 
religion  of  the  Gentiles.  Some  of  these  were  so  hor- 
I'idly  impure,  that  it  might  have  been  supposed  none 
but  demons  could  invent,  and  none  but  persons  pos- 
sessed by  demons  practise  them.  Yet  they  were  prac- 
tised by  men,  by  women,  and  not  merely  under  the 
cover  of  darkness,  but  in  the  face  of  day.  But  a  veil 
must  be  thrown  over  the  disgusting  subject  of  pagan 
impurity.  It  is  too  vile  to  be  expressed.  In  Leland's 
work,  already  referred  to,  are  many  particulars  brought 
to  view,  calculated  to  shock  the  feelings  of  every  well- 
disposed  mind,  but  also  calculated  to  produce  a  deep 
impression  of  the  value  of  the  holy  Gospel.  Little 
do  Christians  know  what  they  do,  who  admire  the  an- 
cient Greeks  and  Romans.  More  reasonable  were  it 
to  admire  the  great  majority  of  criminals,  who  die  on 
the  gallows  for  their  crimes,  than  those  nations  whose 
very  religion  was  worse  than  the  crimes  for  which  these 
criminals  suffer.  It  may,  indeed,  be  confidently  as- 
serted, that  the  tendency  of  the  most  celebrated  sys- 
tems of  ancient  paganism  was  the  same  as  is  that  of 
modern  heathenism.  As  the  latter  now  is,  so  the  for- 
mer were  adapted  to  form  man  to  the  image  of  Satan, 
and  to  degrade  him  below  the  brute.  One  etlect  is 
accomplished  by  their  cruelty,  the  other  by  their  im- 


HEATHEN    CRUELTY.  137 

purity.     Whence  such  systems  sprung-,  no  rcas  )rablj 
person  need  hesitate  to  determine. 

3.  When  such  were  the  gods,  and  such  the  religion 
of  the  world,  it  is  easy  to  conjecture  what  the  people 
would  be.  It  is  true  they  had  some  good  laws,  but 
these  were  so  intermingled  with  others  of  an  opposite 
description,  that  their  manners  were  dissolute  to  a  de- 
gree of  which  many  have  little  conception.  Ancient  and 
modern  writers  have  extolled  the  laws  of  Lycurgus. 
Plutarch  says,  that  he  was  pronounced  rather  a  god 
than  a  man,  and  speaks  of  him  as  a  perfect,  wise  man, 
who  obliged  the  world  with  a  nation  of  philosophers. 
The  Spartans  sacrificed  to  him  as  a  god;  and  Aristotle 
extolled  him,  as  deserving  higher  honour  than  this.  Yet 
this  man,  whom  the  most  celebrated  pagan  philosophers 
extolled,  and  modern  infidels  have  admired,  encouraged 
thieving.  The  Spartan  boys  were  trained  to  steal,  and 
Avhipped  unmercifully  if  detected,  not  for  thieving,  but 
for  their  want  of  skill.  By  another  of  his  institutions 
he  encouraged  the  murdering  of  the  Helotes  or  slaves. 
He  sanctioned  the  exposure  of  deformed  children. — 
Every  father  was  obliged  by  the  laws  to  bring  his  child 
to  be  examined  by  persons  appointed,  and  if  it  were  de- 
formed, or  of  a  bad  constitution,  it  was  cast  into  a  deep 
cavern.  Some  of  his  other  institutions  were  adapted 
to  pollute  all  the  young,  and  to  encourage  among  the 
more  mature  the  most  shameless  vice.  The  people 
were  consequently  impure,  proud,  and  perfidious.  Such 
was  this  nation  of  philosophers,  and  such  would  nations 
of  philosophers  be  now. 

In  other  parts  of  Greece,  the  custom  of  exposing  chil- 
dren prevailed.  Aristotle  expressly  says,  that  it  should  be 
a  law  not  to  bring  up  any  weak  or  maimed  child;  and 
that  if  the  laws  of  a  country  forbade  this  practice,  the 
number  of  children  should  be  limited  by  law,  and  any 
12* 


138  HEATHEN    PHILOSOPHERS. 

above  that  number  be  destroyed.  The  laws  of  several 
of  the  Grecian  states  encouraged  the  wickedness  with 
which  the  heathens  are  charged  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Romans. 

The  Romans  also  used  to  expose  their  deformed 
children,  which  was  practised  even  in  Seneca's  time. 
The  ancient  Romans  appear  to  have  been  allowed  by 
Romulus  to  destroy  all  their  female  children,  except 
the  eldest.  The  custom  of  gladiatorial  shows  prevail- 
ed universally  among  the  Romans.  Not  merely  men, 
but  the  women,  divested  of  compassion,  took  a  plea- 
sure in  seeing  the  combatants  kill  each  other.  So  fre- 
quent were  these  shows,  and  so  great  the  number  kill- 
ed, that  Lipsius  says,  no  war  occasioned  such  slaugh- 
ter as  these  sports  of  pleasure,  throughout  the  several 
provinces  of  the  vast  Roman  empire.  Like  the  Greeks, 
the  Romans  were  so  sunk  in  horrid  vices,  that  the 
Apostle's  assertion  applies  with  all  its  force  to  them : 
"It  is  a  shame  even  to  speak  of  the  things  that  are 
done  by  them  in  secret." 

4.  So  far  were  the  celebrated  philosophers  of  anti- 
quity from  instructing  and  reforming  the  darkened  na- 
tions, that  by  their  speculations  they  increased  the 
darkness  ;  and  by  their  infamous  examples  encouraged 
all  manner  of  vice.  Many  of  them  were  actually  athe- 
ists, and  denied  the  existence  of  any  God.  Others  of 
them  encouraged  the  idolatrous  superstitions  that  they 
could  not,  and  did  not  beUeve.  Varro,  after  exposing 
the  cruel  and  impure  rites  of  their  deities,  adds,  "  A 
wise  man  will  observe  all  these  things,  not  indeed  as 
acceptable  to  the  gods,  but  as  commanded  by  the 
laws."  This  hypocritical  system  appears  to  have  been 
prevalent  among  them.  Thus  would  they  honour  as 
gods  the  images  they  despised  ;  and  join  in  the  rites 
they  pronounced  ridiculous  or  obscene.     They  them- 


HEATHEN    PHILOSOPHERS.  139 

selves  ^yc^ein  darkness.  Aristotle  says,  "  As  the  eyes 
of  bats  are  to  the  brightness  of  tlie  daylight,  so  also  is 
the  understanding  of  our  souls  towards  those  things 
which  are  by  nature  the  most  manifest  of  all."  Hence, 
while  some  were  atheists,  others  maintained  that  fire 
is  God  ;*  that  this  world  is  an  animal  endued  with  intel- 
ligence ;  that  it  is  happy,  reasonable,  and  wise;  and 
that  this  world  is  God.f  Hence  they  supposed  their 
souls  part  of  the  divine  soul,  and  corporeal  things 
parts  of  the  body  of  God. 

Marcus  Antoninus,  the  persecutor  of  the  Christians, 
thus  adored  the  world :  in  one  of  his  prayers  he  says, 
"  Whatsoever  is  agreeable  to  thee,  O  comely  world,  is 
agreeable  to  me."  Plato  has  several  passages  contain- 
ing an  express  acknowledgment  of  one  supreme  God, 
but  he  did  not  think  it  proper  or  safe  to  communicate 
such  things  to  the  people.  Instead  of  proposing  God 
to  them  as  the  object  of  their  worship,  he  recommends 
them  to  trust  in,  depend  on,  and  worship  tlie  sun,  moon, 
stars,  and  the  gods  established  by  the  laws.  Thus  when 
he  knew  God,  he  glorified  him  not  as  God,  but  became 
vain  in  his  imaginations,  and  his  foolisli  heart  was  dar- 
kened; and  he  did  what  in  him  lay  to  darken  others. J 
Cicero  recommended  the  same  kind  of  worsliip,  and 
prescribed  not  only  that  of  the  greater  of  the  Roman 
gods,  but  also  that  of  Hercules,  Romulus,  &c.,  together 
with  that  of  the  household  gods ;  and  binds  it  as  a  duty 
upon  people  in  these  things  to  follow  the  religion  of 
their  ancestors.  So  far  was  this  admired  man  from  in- 
dulging concern  to  know  his  Maker,  that  he  spoke  of 
the  Jewish  religion  as  a  barbarous  superstition.     kSo- 

*  Nichols's  Conference,  v.  i.  p.  179. 

t  Leiaiid,  p,  i.  c.  7.    lb.  p.  i.  c.  9.    lb.  p.  i.  c.  13.  This  was  the  sentiment  of 
Varro,  and  appears  to  have  been  that  of  Cicero  and  the  Stoics, 
i  Lelaud,  part  i.  c.  12.  p.  296. 


140  HEATHEN    PHILOSOPHERS. 

crates  sanctioned  idolatry  ;  when  about  to  die,  he  or- 
dered a  cock  to  be  sacrificed  to  Escidapius.  With  re- 
spect to  the  immortality  of  the  soul  and  of  a  future  state 
for  man,  they  were  equally  perplexed,  and  equally  ig- 
norant. When  Cicero  wrote  to  prove  the  immortality 
of  the  soul,  he  represents  the  contrary  as  a  prevalent 
opinion :  and  according  to  him,  a  strange  confusion  ex- 
isted among  the  philosophers  on  this  subject  "Some 
said,  it  (the  soul)  was  the  heart,  others  the  blood,  others 
the  brain,  others  the  breath,  others  lire,  others  said  it 
was  nothing  but  an  empty  name,  others  that  it  was  har- 
mony, others  that  it  was  number."*  Many  held  it 
to  be  not  distinct  from  the  body;  and  others,  who 
thought  it  distinct,  supposed  it  extinguished  at  death 
or  soon  after.  Seneca,  who  has  some  sublime  thoughts 
on  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  elsewhere  represents  this 
belief  as  a  kind  of  pleasing  dream.  In  one  of  his  epis- 
tles, he  speaks  of  having  been  apparently  near  death, 
and  mentions  what  then  supported  him,  not  a  hope  full 
of  immortality,  but  a  belief  that  after  death  he  should 
be  as  insensible  as  before  he  was  born.f  Epictetus 
takes  no  notice  of  future  rewards  and  punishments,  but 
says,  that  at  death,  men  return  to  the  elements  of  wliich 
they  were  made.  The  emperor  Marcus  Antoninus  ap- 
pears to  have  supposed,  that  after  death,  the  soul  is 
dissipated  and  dispersed.;]:  These  three  last  philoso- 
phers lived  after  the  promulgation  of  the  Gospel,  and 
two  of  them  appeared  to  have  noticed  its  professors  in 
their  writings,  but,  they  were  too  full  of  philosophic 
pride  to  embrace  that  humbling  system,  they  lived  and 
died,  with  all  their  fancied  wisdom,  miserable  heathens. 
The  Pythagoreans,  like  the  modern  Brahmins,  main- 

*  Cic  de  Leg.  1.  ii.  c.  8.    Lelaiid,  p.  i.  c.  19.  p.  418.  II).  p.  iii.  c.  3.    lb.  v.  ii. 
317.  4to.  edition.  t  Senecae  Epis.  55.  &  102.  ed.  Commcliu. 

{  Leland,  p.  iii.  c.  3.  p.  327.  329. 


HEATHEN    PHILOSOPHERS.  141 

talued  that  the  soul  after  death  passes  into  other  bodies, 
those  olinen  or  beasts  ;  and  their  founder,  Pythaj^oras, 
to  coiilirm  this  doctrine,  uttered  the  base  and  scandalous 
falsehood,  that  he  had  undergone  several  such  transmi- 
grations, professing  to  name  the  persons  whom  his  soul 
had  animated  through  a  succession  of  ages.  Socrates 
also,  with  respect  to  the  bulk  of  mankind,  held  the 
transmigration  of  souls ;  and  thought  those  of  bad 
men  entered  the  bodies  of  asses,  wolves,  hawks,  kites, 
cVc,  and  those  of  good  men  into  animals  of  a  kind  and 
social  nature,  as  bees,  ants,  &:c. ;  or  else  returned  to 
human  bodies.*  Cicero  evidently  loved  the  doctrine 
of  a  future  state,  but,  as  it  is  well  known,  speaks  of  it 
with  uncertainty  and  doubt. 

The  learned  Jacob  Bryant  has  collected  some  im- 
portant testimonies  on  the  subject  of  this  section.  He 
remarks : 

"  The  uncertainty,  under  which  mankind  laboured, 
is  further  described  by  that  moral  poet  Euripides  in  his 
Hippolytus  ;  where  he  speaks  of  the  misery  and  blind- 
ness of  people  in  this  world,  and  their  doubts  in  respect 
to  futurity: 

"  The  life  of  man  is  all  a  scene  of  care, 
Which  knows  no  intermission.    Wlicn  it's  past, 
Should  there  be  any  fntu-e  bliss,  it  lies 
In  cloud,  and  dreary  darkness,  unrevealed. 
Yet  we,  too  fondly  led  by  what  wc  feel, 
Prize  the  brief  sunshine  of  this  fleeting  life. 
Anxious:  because  wc  have  neither  view,  or  hope 
Of  aught  hereafter.     Thus  we  darkling  rove, 
Anius'd  with  fables  and  poetic  dreams." 

The  poet  Moschus  writes  to  the  same  purpose  in 
his  epitaph  upon  Bion : 

*  Alas !  the  mallow  in  tiie  garden  fair. 
And  herbsi,  and  tloweris,  may  fade:  but  they  again 
Rii-e  up  to  life,  and  have  their  birtii  renew'd. 
But  we,  the  great,  the  powerful,  and  wise, 
Soon  as  we  sink  oblivious,  there  ensues 
A  deep,  a  deadly,  evcr-during  slcej), 
From  whence  we  wake  no  more." 
*  Leland,  p.  ilL  c.  4. 


142  CIVILIZATION    AND    REFINEMENT. 

"Ilence  Sen.eca  in  the  Troades  makes  a  person  say, 
*  There  is  nothiiicr  in  death:  and  death  itself  is  noth- 
ing.' And  in  Sallust  we  read  to  the  same  purpose  the 
words  of  Jidiiis  Cesar,  '  Death  is  a  dissolution  of  all 
mortal  evils.  Beyond  it  there  is  no  room  for  either 
happiness  or  care.'  " 

Catullus  writes, 

"  My  Lesbia,  let  us  live,  and  let  iis  love, 
Suns  set  and  rise  again,  but  we  when  once 
Our  hasty  day  concludes,  shall  sleep  through  one 
Eternal  night." 

5.  In  pursuing  the  subject  it  may  be  observed,  that 
increasing  refinement  did  not  promote  more  purity, 
nor  science  diminish  vice.  Instead  of  that,  as  they 
advanced  in  civilization,  the  heathen  sunk  deeper  in 
religious  debasement ;  and  their  philosophers  were 
among  the  most  vicious  and  abandoned.  Plutarch 
states  in  his  life  of  Numa,  that  he  forbade  the  Romans 
to  represent  God  under  the  form  of  man  or  beast ;  nor 
"was  there  any  graven  or  painted  image  admitted  among 
them  formerly  ;  and  that  for  160  years  they  built  tem- 
ples, but  made  no  image.  Juvenal  (Sat.  xiii.)  observes, 
that  in  ancient  times  they  had  not  such  a  crowd  of  gods 
as  they  worshipped  afterwards.  Thus  they  appear  to 
have  had  some  juster  ideas  of  God,  but,  according  to 
the  apostle's  statement,  they  changed  the  glory  of  the 
uncorruptible  God  into  an  image  made  like  to  corrupt- 
ible man;  professing  themselves  wise  they  became 
fools,  for  the  more  their  fancied  wisdom  increased,  the 
more  their  foolish  gods  multiplied.  In  fiict,  the  phi- 
losophers M^erc  so  far  from  converting  men  from  idol- 
atry and  vice,  that  they  patronized  both  in  their  max- 
ims, and  by  their  practice. 

Plato,  witli  others,  maintains  the  lawfulness  of  lying, 
and  advises  governors  to  lie  to  their  subjects  and  ene- 


EXAMPLES.  li^ 

mios.  With  him,  the  Stoics  held  that  a  wise  man 
iiiioht  make  use  of  a  He  many  ways.  This  same  ad- 
mired philosopher,  who  was  called  the  divine  Plato, 
and  who,  Cicero  says,  was  a  kind  of  god  among  tlic 
philosophers,  in  a  book  in  which  he  designed  to  give 
a  PERFECT  model  of  a  well-ordered  state,  recommends 
a  number  of  practices  too  abominable  and  impure  to  be 
mentioned  in  these  pages.*  Others  represented  vari- 
ous vices  as  not  base,  and  maintained  that  the  opinion 
that  they  were  so,  was  "  agreed  upon  for  the  sake  of 
restraining  foohy  The  most  wicked  practices  that 
can  be  mentioned  they  maintained  to  be  reasonable 
and  harmless. t 

0.  While  such  were  the  doctrines  of  the  philoso- 
phers, we  need  not  w^onder  that  their  practice  accord- 
ed with  their  precepts.  Plato,  Socrates,  Xeno])hon, 
Solon,  Zeno,  are  all  represented  as  dreadfully  impure; 
and  Cicero  declares  that  the  philosophers  not  merely 
practised,  but  gloried  in  their  crimes, |  The  vaunted 
Epictetus  extols  Diogenes  as  a  model  and  pattern  of 
virtue,  sent  by  Jupiter  to  instruct  men  concerning  good 
and  evil,  and  calls  him  the  divine  Diogenes  ;  yet  this 
same  divine  Diogenes  associated  with  abandoned  wo- 
men, and  practised  vice  too  shameful  even  to  mention 
in  these  pages.  "  Diogenes  and  the  Cynics  generally 
taught,  that  parents  may  lawfully  sacrifice  and  eat  their 
children  ;  and  that  there  is  neither  sin  nor  shame  in 
the  grossest  and  most  public  acts  of  lewdness.  Both 
Zeno  and  Cleanthes  tauglit,  that  children  may  as  law- 
fully roast  and  eat  their  parents,  as  any  other  food."^ 
The  hateful  tale  might  be  continued,  but  it  may  be 
better  to  pause.  A  number  of  the  men  that  have  been 
mentioned,  are  among  the  most  respectable  of  those, 

''  Lcland,  p.  ii.  c.  12.    lb.  p.  ii.  c.  8.      t  lb.  p.  ii.  c.  G.    J  lb.  p.  iii.  c.  3. 
§  Dwight's  firist  Seruioa  ou  lufidcl  Pliilosopby. 


144  THEIR    PRIDE    INFERNAL. 

whose  systems  modern  philosophers  prefer  to  that  of 
Christ  and  his  apostles. 

7.  The  pride  of  these  men  was  not  less  shocking 
than  their  abominable  vices.  Epictetus,  one  of  those 
whom  modern  inlidcls  admire,  says,  "  As  to  the  body, 
thou  art  a  small  part  of  the  universe  ;  but  in  respect 
of  the  mind  or  reason,  neither  worse  nor  less  than  the 
gods.  Will  you  not  place  your  good  there  where  you 
are  equal  to  the  gods  ?"  In  opposition  to  the  threat- 
ening, "  I  will  fetter  thee,"  he  ans\vers,  "  Fetter  me  ! 
thou  wilt  fetter  my  feet :  but  Jupiter  himself  cannot 
overcome  my  choice."*  Plutarch  represents  the  Stoics 
as  asserting,  that  "  the  man  who  does  not  come  thort 
of  the  gods  in  virtue,  is  equally  happy  with  Jupiter, 
even  when  he  puts  an  end  to  his  own  life,  provided  he 
be  a  wise  man."  Chrysippus  declares,  that  "  as  it  is 
proper  and  becoming  for  Jupiter  to  glory  in  himself, 
and  in  his  own  life,  and  to  think  and  speak  magnifi- 
cently of  himself,  so  these  things  are  becoming  all 
good  men,  as  being  in  nothing  exceeded  by  Jupiter." 
Seneca  says,  "  that  a  wise  man  lives  upon  an  equality 
with  the  gods;"  and  asserts,  that  "God  does  not  ex- 
ceed the  wise  man  in  happiness,  though  he  does  in 
age  ;"  he  adds,  "  that  there  is  one  thing  in  which  the 
wise  man  excels  God,  that  God  is  wise  by  the  benefit 
of  nature,  not  by  his  oAvn  choice."  Sextus  represents 
the  Mdse  man  as  valuing  and  admiring  himself  above 
Jupiter,  because  "Jupiter  cannot  make  use  of  worldly 
things,  the  wise  man  will  not."  The  same  hell-born 
pride  appears  in  their  high  pretensions  to  self-suffi- 
ciency. Epictetus  says,  "  The  condition  and  charac- 
ter of  a  philosopher  is,  that  he  expects  all  that  might 
profit  or  hurt  him  only  from  himself."  Seneca  repre- 
sents it  as  needless  to  apply  to  the  gods  by  prayer, 

*  Epict.  cited  by  Lelaud,  p.  ii  c.  9. 


ABETTED    SUICIDE.  145 

since  it  is  in  a  man's  own  power  to  make  himself  happy ; 
and  referring  to  virtue  says,  "  This  is  the  cliicf  good, 
wliich,  if  thou  possessest,  thou  wilt  begin  to  be  a  com- 
panion of  the  gods,  not  a  supplicant  to  them.".  Indeed, 
at  other  times,  he  and  other  Stoics  contradicted  them- 
selres  on  the  subject  of  prayer.  The  Stoics  esteemed 
liumility  a  vice ;  and  carried  their  pride  so  far  that 
Heraclitus,  a  philosopher  much  admired  among  them, 
said,  "  I  shall  not  build  altars  to  others,  but  others  to 
me ;"  and  that  great  philosopher  Plautinus,  when  in- 
vited by  Ameleius  to  assist  at  a  sacrifice  he  was  about 
to  offer  to  the  gods,  answered,  "  It  is  for  them  to  come 
to  me,  not  for  me  to  go  to  them."*  How  men,  influ- 
enced by  such  a  spirit  would  treat  the  humbling  doc- 
trines of  the  Gospel  it  is  not  difficult  to  conjecture. 

8.  Modern  infidels  have  encouraged  suicide,  and  an- 
cient heathen  philosophers  did  the  same.  Hume  rep- 
resents suicide  as  the  turning  a  few  ounces  of  blood  out 
of  their  proper  channel.  Marcus  Antoninus  represents 
it  in  the  same  trivial  manner.  "If  my  house  be  smoky, 
I  go  out  of  it,  and  why  is  this  looked  upon  as  a  great 
matter  ?"  Epictetus,  the  two  Plinies,  and  others,  ap- 
proved of  it;  and  Seneca  extols  Cato's  murder  of  him- 
self as  a  most  glorious  action.  In  fact,  the  Stoics  main- 
tained that  it  was  not  only  lawful,  but  a  duty  in  some 
cases  for  a  wise  man  to  despatch  himself.f 

Drunkenness  is  frequently  a  kind  of  gradual  suicide, 
and  sinks  man  lower  than  the  brute  creation.  This 
vice  was  practised  or  approved  by  many  of  the  most 
distinguished  heathen  philosophers.  Zeno,  the  cele- 
brated founder  of  the  Stoics,  is  represented  as  a  great 
drinker.  Chrysippus  died  of  a  surfeit,  through  drink- 
ins;  wine  too  freelv.  Seneca  recommends  occasional 
drunkenness,  and  observes  that  Solon  and  Arcesilas  in- 

*  Leland,  p.  ii.  c.  11.  passim,     f  lb.  p.  ii.  c.  11.  passim. 

13 


146  HARDNESS    OF    HEART. 

'dulged  themselves  in  it.  Plutarch  declares  that  Cato 
of  Utica  spent  wliole  nights  in  drinking  ;  and  the  Stoics 
maintained,  that  a  wise  man  might  be  drunken  and  his 
body  disordered  with  wine,  but  that  it  could  not  hurt 
his  mind.* 

9.  The  Stoics  professed  to  teach  mutual  benevolence, 
yet  other  parts  of  their  system  were  calculated  to  pro- 
duce the  most  hard-hearted  indifference  to  the  wants 
and  miseries  of  man.  Epictetus,  one  of  their  most 
grave  and  judicious  authors,  having  mentioned  what  ho 
says  are  called  great  events,  namely,  wars,  and  the  des- 
truction of  men  and  cities,  asks,  "  What  great  matter 
is  there  in  all  this?  Nothing.  What  great  matter  is 
there  in  the  death  of  numbers  of  oxen,  numbers  of 
sheep,  or  in  the  burning  or  pulling  down  numbers  of 
nests  of  storks  or  swallows  ?"  He  affirms  that  these 
cases  are  perfectly  alike.  "  The  bodies  of  men  are  de- 
stroyed, and  the  bodies  of  sheep  and  oxen.  The  houses 
of  men  are  burnt,  and  the  houses  or  nests  of  storks. 
What  is  there  great  or  dreadful  in  all  this  ?"  Seneca 
says,  "  A  wise  man  is  not  afflicted  by  the  loss  of  his 
friends  or  children ;"  and  he  reckons  among  the  things 
which  should  not  grieve  him, "  the  besieging  of  his  coun- 
try, the  death  of  his  children,  and  the  slavery  of  his 
parents."  Epictetus  allows  a  person  to  groan  with  one 
in  affliction;  but  says,  "Take  heed  however  not  to 
groan  inwardly  too."  They  might  put  on  the  appear- 
ance of  compassion,  but  must  take  care  to  feel  none. 
The  same  writer  compares  the  death  of  a  friend  to  the 
breaking  of  an  old  pipkin,  and  says,  "  Do  you  not  send 
and  buy  a  new  one?"t 

10.  After  this  hasty  survey  of  the  principles  and  prac- 
tices of  ancient  heathens,  we  may  with  propriety  glance 
at  those  of  modern  infidels.     Voltaire  says,  that  "  the 

*  Lcland,  p.  ii.  c.  11.  passim.  t  lb.  p.  ii.  c.  10.  passim. 


MODERN    INFIDELS.  147 

religion  of  the  pagans  consisted  in  nothing  Init  moraUty 
and  festivals."*  What  tlieir  morality  was,  the  prece- 
ding statements  show.  The  morality  of  their  infidel 
admirers  greatly  resembles  theirs.  Lord  Herbert,  the 
father  of  modern  intidels,  declares,  that  the  indulgence 
of  lust  and  of  anger  is  no  more  to  be  blamed  than  the 
thirst  occasioned  by  the  dropsy.  Hume  maintains  that 
there  are  no  solid  arguments  to  prove  the  existence  of 
a  God,  and  that  it  is  unreasonable  to  believe  God  to  be 
wise  and  good  ;  that  i)ride  and  self- valuation  are  virtues ; 
that  self-murder  is  lawful  and  commendable ;  that  adul- 
tery must  be  practised  if  we  would  obtain  all  the  ad- 
vantages of  life  ;  that  female  infidelity  (or  adultery)when 
known  is  a  small  thing,  when  unknown  nothing.  That 
the  external  world  does  not  exist,  or  that  its  existence 
may  be  reasonably  doubted ;  that  the  universe  exists  in 
the  mind,  and  that  the  mind  does  not  exist.  Lord  Bo- 
lingbroke  teaches,  that  ambition,  the  desire  of  power, 
avarice,  and  sensuality  may  be  lawfully  gratified,  if  they 
can  be  gratified  safely;  that  man's  chief  end  is  to  gra- 
tify the  appetites  and  inclinations  of  the  flesh;  that 
modesty  is  inspired  by  mere  prejudice  ;  that  adultery  is 
no  violation  of  the  religion  of  nature ;  and  that  there 
is  no  wrong  in  lewdness,  except  in  the  highest  incest.f 
Diderot  advised  his  friend  Wilkes  to  associate  with 
women  of  abandoned  character.^  Voltaire,  in  latter 
life,  doubted  of  the  existence  of  any  God.  Toland  be- 
lieved the  world  to  be  God.^)  Godwin  maintains  that 
marriage  is  an  improper  monopoly.  Tindal  makes  the 
doctrine  of  forgiving  injuries  an  objection  to  the  Gos- 
pel morality.  II     Bayle  approves  of  revenge.     Chubb 

*  Hist.  Louis  XIV.  t  Dwight  on  Infidel  Philosophy,  Sermon  1.  (:  Letter 
of  Diderot  in  Sir  William  Jones's  Life.      §  Leland,  p.  ii.  c.  8. 

II  Dwi^'ht,  an  author  to  whom  I  am  indebted  for  various  statements  included 
XB  this  section. 


148  MODERN    INFIDELITY. 

thinks  prayer  improper,  and  perhaps  displeasing  to  the 
Deity.*  Many  or  most  modern  infidels  have  denied 
the  immortality  of  the  soul,  and  a  state  of  future  retri- 
bution ;  and  the  National  Assembly  of  France,  when 
composed  of  inlidels,  declared  death  an  eternal  sleep. 

Were  such  principles  to  be  brought  into  general  ac- 
tion, what  a  scene  of  debauchery,  desolation,  and  vice 
would  this  world  become  !  Referring  to  the  indulgence 
allowed  licentious  passions  in  the  doctrines  of  infidels, 
an  excellent  writer  well  remarks,  "Lewdness  alone, 
extended  as  their  doctrines  extend  it,  would  extermi- 
nate every  moral  feeling  from  the  human  breast,  and 
every  moral  and  virtuous  action  from  the  human  con- 
duct ;  Sodom  would  cease  to  be  a  proverbial  name  ; 
and  Gomorrah  would  be  remembered  only  to  wonder 
at  her  unhappy  lot,  and  to  droj)  the  tear  of  sympathy 
upon  her  ashes." 

11.  Where  men,  whatever  at  other  times  they  may 
talk  of  virtue,  adopt  and  teach  such  principles  as  those 
detailed  in  the  last  section,  it  is  natural  to  expect  that 
their  practice  will  resemble  their  doctrines.  And  it 
has  done  so. 

"Herbert,  Hobbes,  Shaftsbury,  Woolston,  Tindal, 
Chubb,  and  Bolingbroke  were  all  guilty  of  the  vile  hy- 
pocrisy of  professing  to  love  and  reverence  Christian- 
ity, while  they  were  employed  in  no  other  design  than 
to  destroy  it.  Such  faithless  professions,  such  gross 
violations  of  truth,  in  Christians,  would  have  been  pro- 
claimed to  the  universe  by  these  very  writers  as  infa- 
mous desertions  of  principle  and  decency.  Are  they 
less  infamous  in  themselves  ?  All  hypocrisy  is  detes- 
table ;  but  I  know  of  none  so  detestable  as  that  which 
is  coolly  written,  with  full  premeditation,  by  a  man  of 
talents,  assuming  the  character  of  a  moral  and  rehgi- 

*  Dwight,  p,  i.  c.  17. 


MODERN    INFIDELITY.  149 

ous  instructor,  a  minister,  a  prophet  of  the  truth  of 
the  infinite  God. 

"  The  morals  of  Rochester  and  Wharton  need  no 
comment.  Woolston  was  a  gross  blasphemer.  Blount 
solicited  his  sister-in-law  to  marry  him,  and,  being  re- 
fused, shot  himself.  Tindal  was  originally  a  protest- 
ant,  then  turned  papist,  then  protestant  again,  merely 
to  suit  the  times,  and  was  at  the  same  time  infamous 
for  vice  in  general,  and  the  total  want  of  principle. 
He  is  said  to  have  died  with  this  prayer  in  his  mouth, 

*  If  there  is  a  God,  I  desire  that  he  may  have  mercy 
on  me.'  Hobbes  wrote  his  Leviathian  to  serve  the 
cause  of  Charles  I.,  but  finding  him  fail  of  success,  he 
turned  it  to  the  defence  of  Cromwell,  and  made  a  merit 
of  this  fact  to  the  usurper,  as  Hobbes  himself  unblush- 
ingly  declared  to  Lord  Clarendon.  Morgan  had  no  re- 
gard to  truth ;  as  is  evident  from  his  numerous  falsifi- 
cations of  Scripture,  as  well  as  from  the  vile  hyj)ocrisy 
of  professing  himself  a  Christian  in  those  very  writings 
in  which  he  labours  to  destroy  Christianity.  Voltaire, 
in  a  letter  now  remaining,  requested  his  friend  D'Alenj- 
bert  to  tell  for  him  a  direct  and  palpable  lie,  by  deny- 
ing that  he  was  the  author  of  the  Philosophical  Dic- 
tionary. D'Alembert  in  his  answer  informed  him,  that 
he  had  told  the  lie.  Voltaire  has  indeed  expressed  his 
own  moral  character  perfectly  in  the  following  words : 

*  Monsieur  Abbe,  I  must  be  read,  no  matter  whether  I 
am  believed  or  not !'  He  also  solemnly  professed  to 
believe  the  catholic  relijjion,  although  at  the  same  time 
he  doubted  the  existence  of  a  God.  Hume  died  as  a 
fool  dieth.  The  day  before  his  death  he  spent  in  a 
pitiful  and  afiected  unconcern  about  this  tremendous 
subject,  playing  at  whist,  reading  Lucian's  dialogues, 
and  making  silly  attempts  at  wit  concerning  his  inter- 
view with  Charon,  the  heathen  ferry-man  of  Hades. 

13* 


150  ON    THE    COMMUNITY. 

*'It  will  easily  be  supposed  that  my  information  con- 
cerning the  private  lives  of  these  men  must  be  distant 
and  imperfect ;  what  has  been  said  will,  however,  fur- 
nish any  one  at  all  acquainted  with  the  human  charac- 
ter, with  just  ideas  of  their  morality.  I  shall  only  add, 
that  Rousseau  (Jean  Jacques)  is  asserted  to  have  been 
guilty  of  gross  theft,  perjury,  fornication,  and  adultery  ; 
and  of  abjuring  and  assuming,  alternately,  the  catholic 
and  the  protestant  religion,  neither  of  which  he  be- 
lieved."* 

Rousseau  himself  confesses  his  thieving,  and  other 
vices.  As  for  Paine,  if  possible,  he  was  worse  in  his 
morals  than  even  Rousseau  ;  and  such  a  filthy  and  dis- 
gusting drunkard,  that  in  the  latter  part  of  his  life  it 
was  difficult  to  find  a  person  that  would  take  the  care 
of  him. 

12.  There  is  no  doubt  that,  among  the  merely  nom- 
inal professors  of  Christianity,  a  dreadful  mass  of  vice 
exists ;  yet  among  those  who  never  felt  the  saving 
power  of  religion,  multitudes  have  a  curb  placed  on 
tjieir  vices  by  the  Christian  system.  Where  infidelity 
prevails,  this  check  is  removed,  and  men  precipitate 
themselves  headlong  into  the  lowest  sinks  of  iniquity. 
France,  after  the  revolution,  when  infidelity  triumphed 
presented  an  awful  illustration  of  this  remark.  "  In 
the  repubhcan  year  ending  September  23, 1803,  by  the 
report  of  the  prefect  of  police  to  the  grand  judge  for 
the  district  of  Paris,  the  number  of  suicides  was,  men 
490,  women  167,  total  657.  Of  persons  murdered, 
men  81,  women  69,  total  150.  Of  divorces  644.  Of 
murderers  executed  155.  Among  those  executed  were 
seven  fathers  who  had  poisoned  their  children ;  ten 
husbands  who  murdered  their  wives  ;  six  wives  who 

*  Dwight  on  infidel  Philosophy. 


ON    THE    COMMUNITY.  151 

poisoned  their  husbands ;    and  fif.cen  cliildron  ^vho 
murdered  tlieir  parents."* 

That  well-known  writer,  Zimmerman,  has  furnished 
an  awful  account  of  the  effect  of  infidel  principles  at 
Berlin.  He  observes  that  the  kin^r  (Frederic)  wished 
his  subjects  to  think  freely  ;  and  that  every  thing  in 
morals  and  religion  "  degenerated  into  a  kind  of  men- 
tal anarchy,  both  at  court,  and  in  the  city.  Notwith- 
standing the  situation  of  alUiirs,  Frederic  never  showed 
any  inclination  for  restoring  order ;  and  the  result  was, 
that  irreligion  and  deism  became  fashionable.  Some 
of  those  men,  who  called  themselves  enlightened,  op- 
posed every  restraint  on  opinions  ;  and  enlightened 
women  set  no  bounds  on  their  inclinations  and  pas- 
sions." They  accordingly  indulged  freely  and  unblush- 
ingly  in  the  grossest  licentiousness. 

*'  Several  of  the  women  were  unfaithful  to  their  hus- 
oands,  because  they  were  deists,  that  is,  so  very  en- 
lightened women.  Female  infidelity  and  divorces  be- 
came as  common  at  Berlin,  as  they  were  at  the  most 
corrupted  period  of  the  Roman  empire.  Some  of  the 
most  enlightened  people  of  fashion  instituted  dances  in 
which  they  danced  naked.  This  pretended  light  made 
no  where  so  much  progress  as  at  Potsdam.  The  prin- 
ciples of  deism,  and  this  progress  of  reason,  were  there 
carried  to  such  a  length,  as  some  officers  of  the  king's 
household  informed  me,  that,  during  the  last  ten  years, 
above  three  hundred  people  had  committed  suicide  at 
Potsdam  only."t 

13.  And  now,  having  surveyed  that  divinely  benev- 
olent system,  that  would  change  the  desert  of  this 
world  into  the  garden  of  the  Lord,  and  having  contrast- 
ed with  it  the  impurity,  folly,  and  vice  encouraged  by 

*  Dwight's  Theology,  Sermon  31. 
1  Ziiumcnnan's  iuterrsting  conversations  between  Frederick  tlie  Third,  &c. 


153  COMPARISONS    INSTITUTED. 

ancient  heathen  and  modern  infidel  philosophers,  are 
you  not  indeed  ready  to  bind  the  Gospel  to  your  heart? 
These  systems  arc  so  opposite,  that  both  cannot  come 
from  the  same  source.  Which  is  from  heaven,  and 
which  from  liell  ?  Compare,  I  will  not  say  the  char- 
acter of  Jesus,  I  will  not  for  a  moment  degrade  my 
Lord,  by  suggesting  a  comparison  between  his  spotless 
excellence,  and  the  polluted  beings  heathenism  and  in- 
fidelity produces  ;  better  were  it  to  compare  the  light 
of  eternal  day  with  the  gloom  of  the  infernal  prison ; 
but  compare  his  precepts  with  the  precepts  of  the  wisest 
philosophers  that  knew  him  not,  and  O  what  a  glorious 
attestation  must  every  unprejudiced  mind  see  springing 
from  the  comparison,  to  the  divine  origin  of  his  in- 
structions !  Compare  the  character  and  instructions  of 
his  apostles,  in  themselves  but  erring  mortal  men,  with 
those  of  the  most  distinguished  heathen  philosophers ; 
Paul's  humility  with  Plato's  pride;  their  chaste  purity 
with  the  infamous  licentiousness  of  Solon  and  Zeno, 
and  Xenoplion  and  Diogenes,  and  even  of  Socrates 
himself;  their  temperance  in  practice  and  precept  with 
the  philosophers'  drunkenness  ;  their  patience  under 
suffering  with  the  cowardly  suicide  philosophers  en- 
couraged ;  their  benevolent  love  with  the  hard,  unfeel- 
ing apathy  of  Seneca  and  Epictetus;  and  all  their  ele- 
vated representations  of  God,  and  love  to  him,  with 
the  paltry  gods  these  philosophers,  at  least  in  profes- 
sion, adored ;  and  the  inhuman  and  polluted  rites,  by 
which  those  gods  were  worshipped ;  do  this,  and  un- 
less you  love  darkness  rather  than  light  because  your 
deeds  are  evil,  you  cannot  hesitate  which  system  came 
from  hell,  and  which  from  heaven.  If  you  would  pur- 
sue the  comparison  further,  contrast  the  doctrines  and 
characters  of  the  apostles  with  those  of  modern  infi- 
dels j  the  holy  instructions  of  the  former  with  the  bane- 


VIEW    OF     MOHAMMEDANISM.  153 

fill  tloctriiies  of  the  latter;  the  salutiiry  food  thoyofier 
to  your  soul  with  the  dry  husks  and  poison  which 
Hume  presents ;  their  open  sincerity  with  the  j^ross 
hypocrisy  of  Herbert  and  Hobbes,  and  Tiudal  and  Bo- 
lingbroke  ;  their  love  and  reverence  for  God  with  the 
blasphemies  of  Woolston  and  Voltaire  ;  their  almost 
blameless  lives  with  the  abominable  prolli<racy  of 
Rousseau  and  Paine  :  and  their  peaceful  departure,  ex- 
emplified in  the  language  of  one  of  them,  "  I  know 
whom  I  have  believed — I  have  fought  a  good  fight,  I 
have  linished  my  course,  I  have  kept  the  faith ;  hence- 
forth there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  of  righteousness, 
which  the  Lord  the  righteous  Judge  shall  give  me  at 
that  day,"  with  the  pitiful  death  of  Hume  endeavour- 
ing to  utter  some  contemptible  jests  in  his  last  hours, 
about  his  interview  with  Charon  the  heathen  ferryman 
of  Hades;  make  this  contrast  with  an  unprejudiced 
mind,  and  it  will  be  so  plain  in  your  view,  that  the  un- 
lettered men  of  Galilee,  as  much  in  real  worth  excel 
these  self-important  philosophers,  as  it  is  plain  that 
health  is  better  than  the  plague,  virtue  than  vice,  light 
than  darkness,  and  smiling  plenty  than  desolating 
famine. 

14.  There  is  indeed  one  other  prevalent  religious 
system  in  the  world,  which  has  not  yet  been  noticed 
on  this  occasion ;  it  is  the  system  of  Mahomet.  With 
respect  to  him,  it  may  be  sufficient  to  observe  that  he 
furnishes  in  his  own  writings  enough  to  prove  him  an 
impious  impostor.  He  professes  great  respect  to  the 
character  of  Jesus,  and  describes  him  as  the  chief  of 
all  prophets,  and  the  Word  of  God.  He  speaks  of  his 
miraculous  powers,  as  well  as  those  of  his  discijdes, 
and  particularly  of  his  raising  dead  persons  to  life.* 
And  thus,  in  allowing  Jesus  to  be  sent  from  God,  he 

*  Kor.  c.  3. 


154  VIEW    OF    MOHAMMEDANISM. 

granted  enough  to  overthrow  his  own  system,  which 
is  so  different  from  that  of  him  whom  he  allows  to  have 
been  the  Word  of  God.  Perhaps  it  may  be  useful  to 
state  a  few  more  brief  particulars  on  this  subject. 

Mahomet  was  born  about  six  hundred  years  after 
the  death  of  Christ.  After  having  obtained  some  dis- 
ciples, he  at  length  had  recourse  to  arms;  and  inspir- 
ing his  soldiers  with  an  enthusiastic  valour,  carried 
desolation  and  destruction  wherever  he  went.  On  one 
occasion,  in  cold  blood,  he  ordered  seven  hundred  pris- 
oners to  be  beheaded,  under  the  most  aggravating  cir- 
cumstances of  cruelty.  His  religion  was  propagated 
by  the  sword.  The  alternative  proposed  to  vanquish- 
ed nations,  was  death  or  conversion  to  his  rehgion. 
His  precepts  to  his  followers  were,  "  Kill  the  idolaters 
wherever  ye  shall  find  them,  and  take  them  prisoners 
wherever  ye  shall  find  them  ;  and  besiege  them,  and 
lay  wait  for  them  in  every  convenient  place.  When 
ye  encounter  the  unbelievers,  strike  off  their  heads,  un- 
til ye  have  made  a  great  slaughter  of  them ;  and  bind 
them  in  bonds.  Whoso  fighteth  for  God's  true  relig- 
ion, God  will  not  suffer  his  works  to  perish."  Thus 
"was  the  system  spread  abroad  by  Mahomet  and  Iiis 
successors. 

Mahomet  in  his  own  life  was  debauched  to  excess ; 
professing  that  he  had  a  permission  from  God  to  co- 
habit, not  merely  with  more  wives  than  others,  but 
with  his  nieces,  and  any  believing  women.  He  permit- 
ted his  followers  to  have  four  wives,  and  to  indulge  vi- 
cious inclinations  with  as  many  women  as  they  could 
maintain.  He  makes  the  chief  duty  of  his  disciples  to 
consist  in  external  ablutions,  and  stated  repetitions 
of  prayer,  with  some  appointed  ceremonies  ;  and  these 
he  extends  to  the  life  to  come.  He  maintained  that 
there  will  be  marriage  in  the  other  world,  and  repre- 


DYING    TESTIMONIES.  155 

sents  gross  and  debasing  sensuality  as  the  happiness  of 
heaven.  This  system  universally  produces  a  licrce, 
bloody,  intolerant  disposition,  and  is  the  parent  of  ig- 
norance, cruelty,  and  oppression. 

It  is  surely  unnecessary  to  make  a  comparison  be- 
tween this  system  and  Christianity,  to  prove  which  is 
dhine. 

15.  To  what  has  been  ollered  on  the  divine  origin 
of  the  blessed  Gospel,  permit  me  now  to  add  the  tes- 
timonies of  some  of  its  friends  and  some  of  its  enemies. 
It  has  been  said, 

"  Leaving  ihe  old,  both  worlds  at  ouce  they  view, 
Who  stand  upon  the  threshold  of  the  new." 

The  testimonies  of  Christians  near  death  have  pecu- 
liar force,  and  not  less  weighty  are  the  mournful  con- 
fessions of  expiring  infidels. 

Come  then,  my  friend,  into  the  Christian's  dying 
chamber.  See  in  that  chair,  designed  for  ease,  but  not 
easy  to  him,  a  patient  sufferer,  worn  out  with  pain  and 
disease.  He  is  dying.  Mark  his  words :  "How  thank- 
ful am  I  for  death,  as  it  is  the  passage  through  which 
I  go  to  the  Lord  and  Giver  of  eternal  life,  and  as  it  frees 
me  from  all  the  misery  which  you  see  me  now  endure, 
and  which  I  am  willing  to  endure  as  long  as  God  thinks 
fit ;  for  I  know  that  He  will,  by  and  by,  in  his  own  good 
time,  dismiss  me  from  the  body.  These  afflictions  are 
but  for  a  moment,  and  then  comes  an  eternal  weight  of 
glory.  O !  welcome,  welcome  death  !  thou  mayest  well 
be  reckoned  among  the  treasures  of  the  Christian ;  to 
live  is  Christ,  and  to  die  is  gain.  Lord,  now  lettest  thou 
thy  servant  depart  in  peace,  according  to  thy  most  holy 
and  comfortable  word,  for  mine  eyes  have  seen  thy 
most  precious  and  comfortable  salvation. — Here  is  my 
cordial ;  and  what  are  all  the  cordials  given  to  support 
the  dying,  in  comparison  to  that  which  arises  from  the 


156  DYING    TESTIMONIES 

promises  of  salvation  by  Christ  ?     This,  this  supports 


P' 


me 

Look  at  him  again ;  the  power  of  speech  is  ahuost 
gone,  yet  hear  his  dying  lips  utter  one  expression  more, 
"  Precious  salvation."*  The  conflict  is  over,  he  is 
gone.  Let  us  go  hence.  There  is  another  chamber 
of  death ;  behold  the  expiring  sufferer  that  lies  upon 
that  bedf — Listen,  he  is  speaking  to  a  young  heir  of 
nobility  and  wealth. 

"  You  see  the  situation  I  am  in ;  I  have  not  many 
days  to  live  ;  I  am  glad  you  have  an  opportunity  of 
witnessing  the  tranquillity  of  my  last  moments.  But 
it  is  not  tranquillity  and  composure  alone  ;  it  is  joy  and 
triumph  ;  it  is  complete  exultation." — Observe  his  fea- 
tures kindle,  his  voice  rise,  while  pointing  to  a  Bible 
he  adds,  "And  whence  does  this  exultation  spring? — 
From  that  book — from  that  book,  too  much  neglected 
indeed,  but  which  contains  invaluable  treasures !  trea- 
sures of  joy  and  rejoicing !  for  it  makes  us  certain  that 
this  mortal  shall  put  on  immortality." 

Let  us  enter  the  chamber  in  which  another  Christian 
dies.  He  has  devoted  his  days  to  the  study  and  illus- 
tration of  the  scriptures.  He  has  exposed  the  sophis- 
tries of  the  infidel  Hume,  and  shown  his  vaunted  ar- 
guments against  the  Gospel  to  be  utterly  falacious  and 
contemptible.  The  end  of  his  days  is  now  at  hand; 
death  is  putting  to  the  severest  test  the  value  of  the  prin- 
ciples he  has  advocated.  Near  him  are  his  wife  and 
niece  weeping  in  the  prospect  of  his  immediate  disso- 
lution. Just  now  he  seemed  expiring,  but  a  cordial 
has  unexpectedly  revived  him.  The  power  of  speech 
for  a  few  minutes  returns.  Now  he  looks  on  his  mourn- 
ing relatives,  and  tells  them,  that  he  wonders  to  see 
their  countenances  covered  with  tears  in  the  apprehen- 

*  Hervey,  t  William  Leechman. 


OP    CHRISTIANS    AND    INFIDELS.  157 

slon  of  his  departure,  and  adds,  "At  that  instant  I  felt 
my  mind  in  such  a  state,  in  the  thouglits  of  my  innne- 
diate  dissohition,  tliat  I  can  express  my  feehngs  in  no 
other  way,  than  by  saying  that  I  was  in  a  rapture."* 

He  too  is  gone  to  rest.  Shall* we  go  to  one  other 
house  of  death?  and  see  one  Christian  more  expire? 
There  another  dies  !  he  has  devoted  his  hfe  to  the  ser- 
vice of  the  gospel ;  he  has  advocated  by  his  pen  the 
holy  cause  of  Jesus  ;  he  has  exposed  the  abominations 
of  paganism,  and  the  sophistry  and  vicious  maxims  of 
infidels.  Now  mark  his  closing  testimony.  "  I  give 
my  dying  testimony  to  the  truth  of  Christianity.  The 
promises  of  the  Gospel  are  my  support  and  consola- 
tion :  they,  alone,  yield  me  satisfaction  in  a  dying  hour. 
I  am  not  afraid  to  die.  The  Gospel  of  Christ  has  raised 
me  above  the  fear  of  death ;  for  I  know  that  my  Re- 
deemer liveth."t 

Now  let  us  wander  to  a  very  different  scene.  Let 
us  enter  the  chambers  where  infidels  arc  dying.  There 
lies  Voltaire.  He  has  long  opposed  the  Gospel ;  and 
concluded  his  letters  to  infidel  friends,  with  "Crush 
the  wretch."  But  now  he  is  overwhelmed  with  hor- 
ror and  despair ;  not  a  gleam  of  hope  breaks  in  upon 
his  soul.  He  curses  his  former  companions  in  infidel- 
ity, and  exclaims,  "  Retire  !  It  is  you  that  have  brought 
me  to  my  present  state  !  Begone !  I  could  have  done 
without  you  all ;  but  you  could  not  exist  without  me  ! 
And  what  a  wretched  glory  have  you  procured  me !" 

Now  he  exclaims,  "  O  Christ !  O  Jesus  Christ !  " 
Then  utters  with  horror,  "  I  am  abandoned  by  God 
and  man. "  Alternately  he  supplicates  and  blasphemes 
the  God  he  has  denied.  Wretched  man  !  wretched 
fame  which  infidelity  obtained  him  !J:     Let  us   enter 

*  George  Campbell.       t  John  Leland.       X  See  Simpson's  Plea,  &c. 

14 


158  DYING    TESTIMONIES. 

the  dying  chamber  of  another  infidel  ;*  he  is  dying  a 
martyr ;  a  martyr  to  drunkenness  and  brandy.  No 
bright  hopes  clieer  the  last  moments  of  this  debauched 
apostle  of  infidelity.  Ask  him, — "  What  think  you  of 
Jesus  now?"  his  mournful  moans,  his  bitter  cries,  give 
a  forced  but  unwilling  reply  :  he  exclaims,  "  0  Lord, 
help  me  !  O  Lord,  help  me !  O  Christ,  help  me  !  O 
Christ,  help  me !"  He  confesses  to  one,  who  had 
burnt  his  Age  of  Reason,  that  he  wished  all  who  had 
read  it  had  been  as  wise  as  he  ;  and  adds,  "  If  ever  the 
devil  had  an  agent  on  earth  I  have  been  one."  And 
when  apprehending  immediate  dissolution,  exclaims, 
"  I  think  I  can  say,  what  they  make  Jesus  Christ  to 
say,  ]My  God,  my  God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken  me  ?" 
At  length  he  dies,  but  notwithstanding  all  the  horrors 
of  conscience,  a  stranger  to  real  penitence;  having 
probably  sinned  that  sin  which  admits  of  no  repentance. 
We  need  go  no  further ;  these  apostles  of  infidelity, 
like  malefactors  confessing  their  crimes  at  the  gallows, 
have,  in  their  dying  horrors,  confessed  that  they  could 
not  disbelieve  that  religion  they  had  laboured  to  des- 
troy. Whence  the  cries,  O  Christ !  O  Jesus  Christ ! 
Lord,  help  me!  Christ,  help  me!  but  from  an  inward 
conviction,  that  Christianity  is  divine.  They  had  doubt 
less  been  against  the  Bible,  because  the  Bible  was 
against  them  ;  and  now,  like  the  demons  the  Saviour 
ejected,  they  confessed  him,  in  whose  mercy  they  could 
no  longer  find  a  part. 

*  T.  Paine    See  Cbcctham's  Life  of  this  man,  &c. 


APPENDIX. 


I. TO    THOSE    WHO    DOUBT    THE    TRUTH    OF 

CHRISTIANITY. 

As  you  h ave  now  suneyed  the  evidence  for  the  divine  origin  of 
Christianity  which  has  hcen  adduced  in  the  preceding  treatise,  the 
question  may  be  proposed,  What  is  the  effect  upon  your  mind?  Do 
you  still  hesitate  to  acknowledge  the  claims  of  the  Gospel,  and  to 
confess  its  divinity  ?  If  ypu  do ;  by  all  that  is  dear  to  you,  be  persua- 
ded to  continue  your  investigation  till  you  can  refute  the  evidence 
offered  for  Christianity,  or  till  you  yield  to  its  force.  This  is  what 
wisdom  would  dictate  if  there  were  but  o»e  species  of  evidence  ;  but 
when  there  are  so  many,  when  miracles — prophecies — the  holy  ten- 
dency of  the  religion — the  acknowledgments  of  its  enemies — and  the 
testimonies  of  millions  of  its  martyred  friends,  all  unite  in  its  support, 
and  when,  if  it  is  divine,  your  eternal  state  is  connected  with  your 
decision,  O  tiifle  not  with  a  question  so  important.  Trifiing  is  mad- 
ness here.  But  if  such  is  mere  neglect,  what  language  can  describe 
the  guilt  and  infatuation  of  treating  with  contempt  a  religion  which 
you  cannot  but  feel  may,  after  all  the  ridicule  that  scoffers  can  cast 
upon  it,  prove  divine.  If  ever  inclined  to  this  extreme  of  wicked- 
ness, O  consider  you  cannot  "pull  down  the  spacious  fabric  of  hea- 
ven, or  undermine  the  profound  abyss  of  hell,  by  a  profane  scoff," 
nor  can  you  dethrone  the  Son  of  God  by  all  your  "philosophic  wit 
called  argument,"  nor  by  the  grosser  sarcasms  of  hardened  impiety. 
Perhaps  you  laugh ;  but  will  you  laugh  in  misery?  Perhaps  you  jest; 
bat  will  you  jest  in  hell?  Perhaps  you  call  that  place  of  woe  a  bug- 
bear; will  you  on  a  dying  bed?  did  Voltaire?  did  Paine?  did  the 
unhappy  infidel,  who  cried,  "O  thou  blasphemed,  yet  most  indulgent 
Lord  God!  hell  itself  is  a  refuge,  if  it  hide  mc  from  thy  frown  !" 

O  listen  not  to  the  delusions  of  unbelief  and  the  suggestions  of  an 
infernal  foe.     Rather  seek  mercv.     Flee  from  the  wrath  to  come 


IGO  APPENDIX. 

Is  not  death  already  clad  in  terrors?  Then  turn  to  him  who  would 
take  its  sting  away. 

It  has  been  the  fashion  with  some  writers  against  Christianity,  to 
represent  it  as  needless,  and  to  assert  that  human  reason  is  a  suffi- 
cient guide  to  virtue  and  happiness.  What  were  the  instructions  of 
those  who  had  but  this  guide,  and  who  were  destitute  of  revelation, 
let  the  last  chapter  answer;  and  what  are  their  insti'uctions  now,  let 
the  state  of  modern  ])agan  nations  show.  Some  modern  enemies  of 
the  Gospel  have  been  the  professed  admirers  of  savage  life,  which 
has  been  cantingly  represented  as  a  state  of  pure  nature.  In  the  hear- 
ing of  that  man  of  gigantic  intellect,  Dr.  Samuel  Johnson,  a  gentle- 
man quoted  the  words  of  an  officer  who  had  lived  in  the  wilds  of 
America,  with  an  air  of  admiration  as  if  they  had  been  truly  philoso- 
phical. "Here  am  I,  free  and  unrestrained,  amidst  the  rude  mag- 
nificence of  nature,  with  this  Indian  woman  at  my  side,  and  this  gun 
■with  which  I  can  procure  food  when  I  want  it:  what  more  can  be 
desired  for  human  happiness?"  Johnson  answered,  "  Do  not  allow 
yourself,  sir,  to  be  imposed  upon  by  such  gross  absurdity.  It  is  sad 
stufif;  it  is  brutish.  If  a  bull  could  speak,  he  might  as  well  exclaim, 
Here  am  I,  with  this  cow,  and  this  grass,  what  being  can  enjoy 
greater  felicity?" 

The  same  great  man  said,  when  speaking  of  a  person  who  main- 
tained that  there  is  no  difference  between  virtue  and  vice,  "  Why, 
sir,  if  the  fellow  does  not  think  as  he  speaks,  he  is  lying,  and  I  see 
not  what  honour  he  can  propose  to  himself  from  having  the  charac- 
ter of  a  liar ;  but  if  he  do  really  believe  that  there  is  no  distinction 
between  virtue  and  vice,  why,  sir,  when  he  leaves  our  house,  let  U3 
count  our  spoons." 

Perhaps  you  urge  that  objections  may  be  started  against  Chris- 
tianity. True  ;  but  there  is  nothing  against  which  human  ingenuity, 
combined  with  human  folly,  cannot  raise  various  objections.  If  you 
will  believe  no  truth,  against  which  objections  are  started,  you  must 
believe  that  neither  God,  nor  man,  nor  earth  nor  heaven  exist. 
Soon  after  the  conquest  of  Canada  by  this  country.  Dr.  Johnson  was 
conversing  respecting  some  who  deny  the  divine  origin  of  Christian- 
ity, when  he  said,  "It  is  always  easy  to  be  on  the  negative  side. 
If  a  man  were  to  deny  that  there  is  salt  upon  the  table  you  could  not 
reduce  him  to  an  absurdity.  Come  let  us  try  this  a  little  further. 
I  deny  that  Cajiada  is  taken.    I  can  support  my  denial  by  pretty 


APPENDIX.  161 

good  arg^umcnts.  '  The  French  are  a  much  more  numerous  people 
than  we,  and  it  is  not  Ukely  they  would  allow  us  to  take  it.'  '  But  the 
miiru>try  have  assured  us  in  all  the  formality  of  a  gazette,  that  it  is 
taken.'  '  Very  true,  but  the  ministry  have  put  us  to  an  enormous 
expense  by  the  war  in  Amei-ica,  and  it  is  their  interest  to  i)ersuade 
us,  that  we  have  got  something  for  our  mone]^'  '  But  the  fact  is 
confirmed  by  thousands  of  men  who  were  at  the  taking  of  it.'  'Aj', 
but  these  men  have  still  more  interest  in  deceiving  us.  They  don't 
want  tiiat  you  should  tliink  that  the  French  have  beat  them,  but 
that  they  have  beat  the  French.'  Now  suppose  you  should  go  over 
and  find  that  it  really  is  taken,  that  would  only  satisfy  yourself,  for 
when  you  came  home  we  will  not  believe  you,  we  will  say  that  you 
have  been  bribed.  Yes,  sir,  notwithstanding  all  these  plausible  ob- 
jections, we  have  no  doubt  that  Canada  is  really  taken.  Such  is 
the  weight  of  common  testimony;  how  much  stronger  are  the  evi- 
dences of  the  Christian  religion  !  " 

On  another  occasion,  in  connection  with  some  other  weighty  ob- 
servations, Mr.  Boswell  describes  him  as  referring  to  the  same  sub- 
ject. Of  a  gentleman  who  was  mentioned,  Johnson  said,  "I  have 
not  met  with  any  man  for  a  long  time  who  has  given  me  such  gen- 
eral displeasure,  he  is  totally  unfixed  in  his  princijiles,  and  wants  to 
puzzle  other  people."  "  I  {Bosicell)  said  that  his  principles  had 
been  poisoned  by  a  noted  infidel  writer  but  that  he  was  nevertheless 
a  benevolent  good  man."  Johnson.  "  We  can  have  no  dependence 
upon  that  instinctive,  that  constitutional  benevolence  and  goodness 
which  is  not  founded  upon  principle.  I  grant  you,  that  such  a  man 
may  be  a  very  amiable  member  of  society ;  I  can  conceive  him 
placed  in  such  a  situation  that  ho  is  not  much  tempted  to  deviate 
from  what  is  right ;  and,  as  ever}'  man  prefers  virtue  when  there  is 
not  some  strong  incitement  to  transgress  its  precepts,  I  can  conceive 
him  doing  nothing  wrong  :  but  if  such  a  man  stood  in  need  of  mo- 
ney, I  should  not  like  to  tmst  him.  Hume,  and  other  sceptical  in- 
novators, are  vain  men,  who  will  gratify  themselves  at  any  expense; 
truth  will  not  afford  sufficient  food  to  their  vanity;  so  they  have  be- 
taken themselves  to  error.  If  1  could  have  allowed  myself  to  gra- 
tify my  vanity  at  the  expense  of  truth,  what  fame  might  I  have  ac- 
quired !  Every  thing  which  Hume  has  advanced  against  Christia- 
nity had  passed  through  my  mind  long  before  he  wrote.  Always 
remember  this  ;  that  after  a  system  is  once  settled  by  positive  cvi- 

14* 


162  APPENDIX. 

dence,  a  few  partial  objections  ought  not  to  shake  it.  Tlie  human 
mind  is  so  limited,  that  it  cannot  take  in  all  the  parts  of  a  subject, 
6o  that  there  may  be  objections  raised  against  any  thing. 

If  you  have  doubts  respecting  the  divinity  of  Christianity,  sit 
down  to  the  question  of  its  heavenly  origin  with  a  candid  mind.  A 
great  and  good  manV)nce  observed,  "  The  Bible  will  treat  you  as 
you  treat  the  Bible."  If  you  come  to  it  for  instruction,  you  will 
find  it;  if  you  seek  consolation,  you  will  obtain  it;  but  if  you  come 
to  hunt  for  objections  and  to  cavil,  God  will  permit  you  to  cavil  and 
to  find  objections  there.  Even  Byron,  when  he  drew  near  eternity, 
could  write : — 

"Within  this  a\vful  volume  lies 
The  mystery  of  myrteries. 
Happiest  they  of  human  race 
To  whom  their  God  has  given  grace 
To  read,  to  fear,  to  hope,  to  pray. 
To  lift  the  latch,  and  force  the  way, 
But  better  ne'er  to  have  been  born, 
Than  read  to  doubt,  and  read  to  scoi-n." 

If  you  have  doubts,  and  with  an  honest  mind  would  pursue  the 
important  inquiry  before  you,  you  may  find  much  information  in  a 
little  compass,  in  such  works  as  Paley's  Evidences,  Bogue's  Essay, 
Watson's  Apologies,  Doddridge's  three  Sermons  on  the  Evidences 
of  Christianity,  Gregory's  Letters,  &c. 


II. TO  THOSE  WHO  DOUBT  THE  PECULIAR    DOCTRINES 

OF   CHRISTIANITY. 

Perhaps  you  acknowledge  the  divine  origin  of  the  Bible,  and 
profess  yourself  a  Christian,  but  you  object  to  the  distinguishing 
pecuHarities  of  the  Gospel,  because,  in  some  things,  they  exceed  the 
power  of  human  comprehension.  The  mysteries  of  the  Trinity  and 
the  incarnation  of  the  Son  of  God  confound  you,  and  are  stumbling 
blocks  to  you. 


APPENDIX.  163 

If  this  be  die  stare  of  your  mind,  consider  that  those  arc  subjects 
of  pure  revelation;  all  our  knowledge  of  thorn  must  come  fnjm  God, 
who  alone  is  fully  acquainted  with  what  concerns  his  own  nature  and 
proceedings.  And  where  revelation  is  concerned,  humility  of  mind 
is  an  indispensable  requisite  for  a  satisfactory  investigation  of  divine 
truth.  If  you  wish  to  be  taught  of  God,  you  must  submit  the  powers 
of  boasted  reason  to  liim.  Yo7c  are  to  employ  those  potcers  to  judge 
of  the  evidences  ivhich  prove  Christianity  a  religion  from  Heaven; 
hut  when  once  that  conviction  is  obtained,  it  then  becomes  your  duty 
to  believe  whatever  God  declares,  hoicever  incomprehensible ;  on 
this  obvious  principle,  that  he  is  acquainted  tcitk  the  truths  reveal' 
ed  in  his  word  infinitely  better  than  his  creautres  can  be.  To  see 
men  trying  the  doctrines  of  revelation  by  what  they  are  pleased  to 
term  the  dictates  of  reason,  and  then  rejecting  divine  truths  because 
unable  to  comprehend  them  by  their  insect  powers,  may  remind  us 
"of  the  poet's  words: 

"The  moles  and  bats  in  full  assembly  find, 
On  special  search,  the  keeu-ey'd  eagle  blind." 

God  leaves  the  proud  to  wander  in  their  own  delusions,  and  to 
perish  in  the  folly  of  their  boasted  wisdom.  He  resisteth  the  proud, 
but  givcth  grace  to  the  humble.  He  knoweth  the  thoughts  of  the 
wise  that  they  are  vain.  If  you  would  know  his  will,  you  must  in- 
quire for  truth  with  child-like  simplicity;  must  desire  the  sincere  milk 
of  the  word  that  you  may  grow  thereby.  Jesus  praised  God  that  he 
had  hid  these  things  from  the  wise  and  prudent,  and  revealed  them 
unto  babes.  If  to  become  one  of  these  babes,  in  child-like  teachable- 
ness and  simplicity,  is  too  humbling  for  you,  you  are  no  scholar  in 
the  school  of  Christ.  Go,  then,  and,  "Indian-like,"  adore  your  idol 
reason.  Go  join  the  upstart  ranks  of  the  wise,  and  compHment  each 
oilier  on  your  wisdom,  and  on  your  supei-iority  to  the  credulous  crowd, 
who  are  so  simple  as  to  suppose  that  God  knows  his  own  nature  bet- 
ter than  they.  Go  spread  your  philosophic  cobwebs;  like  other  cob- 
webs, they  will  last  their  hour;  but  remember,  the  rough  hand  of 
death  will  sweep  you  and  them  together  to  destruction;  and  Heaven 
will  pour  down  eternal  blessings  on  the  babe  in  Christ  whom  you 
despise,  when,  notwithstanding  all  your  fancied  worth  and  wisdom, 
it  has  no  blessing  left  for  you. 


164  APPENDIX. 

You  object  to  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  as  mysterious.  Point, 
then,  to  some  object  in  nature  that  is  not  mysterious,  before  you  hesi- 
tate to  receive  the  declarations  of  the  scriptures  for  describing  a 
mysterious  God. 

A  blade  of  grass  contains  mysteries  that  no  philosopher  can  un- 
ravel. Should  the  nature  of  the  Creator  of  the  universe  be  less  mys- 
terious than  that  of  a  blade  of  grass  !  Look  at  yourself,  you  are  a 
world  of  mysteries.  What  is  your  body  1  You  cannot  answer. 
"What  is  your  spirit  ?  You  are  still  more  unable  to  reply,  and  can 
no  more  comprehend  your  own  spirit,  than  you  can  the  God  of  hea- 
ven. How  does  spirit  act  on  matter?  Your  limbs  move  at  the  di- 
rection of  your  mind.  Still  you  can  give  no  satisfactory  statement. 
You  are  engulfed  in  mystery.  Does  your  nature  consist  of  a  body  and 
a  spirit  merely,  or  do  a  body,  an  animal  soul,  and  an  immortal  spirit 
unite  in  you  ?  Even  this  you  cannot  answer,  nor  tell  whether  you 
yourself  are  compounded  of  two  or  of  three  distinct  parts  or  princi 
pies.  Let  man,  then,  comprehend  and  explain  his  own  nature  be- 
fore he  endeavours  to  unfold  that  of  the  infinite  God  ;  then  it  will 
be  soon  enough  to  doubt  the  divinity  of  Jesus,  because  it  is  a  sub- 
ject fraught  with  mysterj'.  On  this  subject  an  able  writer  remarks, 
"As  to  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  it  is  even  more  amazing  than 
that  of  the  Incarnation  ;  yet,  prodigious  and  amazing  as  it  is,  such 
is  the  incomprehensible  nature  of  God,  that  I  believe  it  will  be  ex- 
tremely difficult  to  prove  from  thence  that  it  cannot  possibly  be 
true.  The  point  seems  to  be  above  the  reach  of  reason,  and  too 
■wide  for  the  grasp  of  human  understanding.  However,  I  have  oft- 
en observed,  in  thinking  of  the  eternity  and  immensity  of  God  ;  of 
his  remaining  from  eternity  to  the  production  of  the  first  creature, 
without  a  world  to  govern,  or  a  single  being  to  manifest  his  goodness 
to ;  of  the  motives  that  determined  him  to  call  his  creatures  into 
being;  why  they  operated  when  they  did,  and  not  before;  of  his 
raising  up  intelligent  beings,  whose  wickedness  and  misery  he  fore- 
saw; of  the  state  in  which  his  relative  attributes,  justice,  bounty, 
and  mercy,  remained  through  an  immense  space  of  duration,  before 
he  had  produced  any  creatures  to  exercise  them  towards  ;  in  think- 
ing, I  say,  of  these  unfathomable  matters,  and  of  his  raising  so 
many  myriads  of  spirits,  and  such  prodigious  masses  of  matter  out 
of  nothing ;  I  am  lost  and  astonished  as  much  as  in  the  contempla- 
tion of  the  Trinity.     There  is  but  a  small  distance  in  the  scale  of 


APPENDIX.  165 

being  between  a  mite  and  me  :  althougli  that  which  is  food  to  me 
is  a  world  to  him,  we  mess,  notwithstanding,  on  the  same  cheese, 
and  breathe  the  same  air;  yet  how  incomprehensible  must  my  na- 
ture and  actions  be  to  him  !  He  can  take  but  a  small  part  of  me 
with  his  eye  at  once  ;  and  it  would  be  the  work  of  his  life  to  make 
the  tour  of  my  arm;  I  can  eat  up  his  world,  immense  as  it  seems 
to  him,  at  a  few  meals :  he,  poor  reptile  !  cannot  tell  but  there  may 
be  a  thousand  distinct  beings  or  persons,  such  as  mites  can  conceive, 
in  so  great  a  being.  By  this  comparison,  I  find  myself  vastly  ca- 
pacious and  comprehensive !  and  begin  to  swell  still  bigger  with 
pride  and  high  thoughts  ;  but  the  moment  I  lift  up  my  mind  to 
God,  between  whom  and  me  there  is  an  infinite  distance,  then  I  my- 
self become  a  mite,  or  something  infinitely  less  ;  I  shrink  almost 
into  nothing.  I  can  follow  him  in  but  one  or  two  steps  in  his  low- 
est and  plainest  works,  till  all  becomes  mystery  and  matter  of 
amazement  to  me.  How,  then,  shall  I  comprehend.  God  himself? 
How  shall  I  understand  his  nature,  or  account  for  his  actions  ?  In 
these,  he  plans  for  a  boundless  scheme  of  things ;  whereas  I  can 
see  but  an  inch  before  me ;  in  that  he  contains  what  is  infinitely 
more  inconceivable  than  all  the  wonders  of  his  creation  put  toge- 
ther; and  I  am  plunged  in  astonishment  and  bhndness  when  I  at- 
tempt to  stretch  my  wretched  inch  of  line  along  the  immensity  of 
his  nature.  Were  my  body  so  large  that  I  could  sweep  all  the  fixed 
stars,  visible  from  this  world  in  a  clear  night,  and  grasp  them  in 
the  hollow  of  my  hand  ;  and  were  my  soul  capacious  in  proportion 
to  so  vast  a  body  ;  I  should,  notwithstanding,  be  infinitely  too  nar- 
row-minded to  conceive  his  wisdom  when  he  forms  a  fly  ;  and  how, 
then,  should  I  think  of  conceiving  of  himself?  No:  this  is  the 
■lighest  of  all  impossibilities.  His  very  lowest  work  checks  and 
ipresses  my  vain  contemplations,  and  holds  them  down  at  an  infi- 
■ile  distance  from  him.  When  we  think  of  God  in  this  light  we  can 
i^iisily  conceive  it  possible,  that  there  maybe  atrinijy  of  persons  in 
his  nature." 

The  incarnation  and  sufferings  of  the  Son  of  God  are  indeed  a 
svil)joct  replete  with  wonder.  That  he  who  was  rich  for  our  sakes 
-hould  become  poor,  that  we  through  his  poverty  might  be  rich;  should 
appear  as  "God  manifest  in  the  flesh,"  is  indeed  mysterious  grace. 
The  transcendent  excellence  of  this  wonder  of  love  has  awakened 


166  APPENDIX. 

gratitude  in  many  hearts  which  has  been  continued  through  hfe,  and 
will  last  to  eternity.     This  forms  the  brightest  glory  of  those 

"Doctrines  tliat  nerv'd  the  martyr's  heart, 

4n(l  ecstasy  to  heaven  impart; 

That  live  in  every  angel's  song, 

And  glow  on  every  ransom'd  tongue." 

If  we  then  permit  the  greatness  of  this  love,  transcending  all  thought 
and  expression,  to  become  a  reason  for  doubting  its  reality,  or  hesi- 
tati  ng  to  yield  to  its  influence,  of  what  unutterably  base  ingratitude 
should  we  be  guilty  ! 

On  this  wonderful  and  interesting  subject,  Maclaurin's  Sermon  on 
the  Cross  of  Christ,  published  at  the  low  pi'ice  of  two-pence,  by  the 
Religious  Tract  Society,  is  eminently  calculated  to  impart  the  most 
beneficial  instruction.  Would  you  see  the  glories  of  the  Saviour's 
love  exhibited  with  unusual  power,  read  that  sermon. 


III. TO    NOMINAL    CHRISTIANS. 

Perhaps  you  are  not  an  unbeliever,  nor  do  you  profess  to  doubt 
the  great  doctrines  of  the  Gospel ;  but  you  are  a  mere  nominal  Chris- 
tian, and  a  consequent  trifler  with  eternal  realities.  It  was  the  re- 
mark of  a  person  once  active  in  the  busy  world,  when  accused  of 
being  too  serious,  that  every  thing  but  man  is  serious.  But  there  are 
situations  in  which  triflers  must  feel.  Take  a  midnight  walk  in  yon- 
der churchyard,  and  you  may  feel  what  you,  perhaps,  never  felt  be- 
fore,— that  the  pursuits  of  this  world  are  dreams,  and  life  itself  a  va- 
pour. While  the  solemn  silence  of  those  regions  of  the  dead  hushes 
every  tumultuous  passion,  while  the  moon  shines  on  the  turf-covered 
graves,  or  by  its  light  assists  you  on  the  stones  to  discern  when  it  was 
said  to  those  who  sleep  beneath.  Your  time  shall  be  no  more,  surely 
you  must  ask  yourself.  Where  am  I?  whither  am  I  going?  When 
this  deep  silence  solemnizes  the  minds  of  the  next  age,  when  they  mark 
the  moon  passing  through  the  cloudless  sky  of  future  years,  and  shi- 


APPENDIX.  167 

ning  on  my  grave,  where  shall  I  be  fixed  ?  These,  who  have  moul- 
dered here  tor  ages,  once  resembled  me,  and  I  must  soon  resemble 
them. 

"  They  suffer'd — but  their  pangs  are  o'er ; 

Eiijoy'd— but  Iheif  deliglits  are  tied  ; 
Had  friends — tlieir  friends  are  now  no  more) 

Had  foes — their  foes  arc  dead. 
They  saw  whatever  I  have  seeu; 

Eucounter'd  all  that  troubles  me ; 
They  were,  wliatever  I  have  been; 

They  arc,  what /5/ia/^6e." 

The  cares  and  fears,  the  hopes  and  joys,  that  once  were  theirs^ 
now  distract  and  perplex  or  delight  me ;  and  when  I  have  left  all 
these  to  lie  down  in  the  dust  of  death,  v/ill  fresh  pains  torment  or 
fresh  joys  delight  me,  pains  or  joys  not  like  those  of  shadowy  life, 
but  to  extend  through  vast  eternity?  Yes,  they  will.  And  only  tho 
Lord  Jesus,  that  Lord  whom  you  call  Saviour,  but  whom  you  slight, 
can  lead  you  to  mansions  of  peace.  How  unreasonable  is  your  con* 
duct  in  trifling  with  rehgion!  a  professed  heliewer,  a.  practical  uti' 
btliever,  (orsJich  are  all  whose Jirst  concern  is  not  to  live  to  Christ, 
Do  you  doubt  the  correctness  of  this  assertion?  permit  me  then  to 
iuquii-e,  should  you  fear  a  threatening  dagger?  should  you  dread  to 
swallow  a  bowl  of  poison?  You  know  you  would;  but  why?  have 
you  ever  felt  the  miseries  inflicted  by  a  dagger  or  by  poison  ?  You 
have  not.  Why,  then,  would  you  fear  them  ?  You  know  the  reason; 
because  you  believe,  on  the  testimony  of  others,  tho  dreadful  effects 
of  daggers  and  of  poisons.  You  dread  them  through  belief.  Here 
you  are  a  believer  on  human  testimony.  A  greater  than  mortals,  a 
greater  than  angels,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  himself,  declares  that  you 
are  a  lost  creature,  and  tells  you  of  scenes  of  misery  to  which  sin 
leads,  more  dreadful  than  the  most  dreadful  here.  Of  a  world  where 
eternal  horror  reigns;  where  miseries  beyond  description  dwell; 
where,  could  they  inflict  a  second  death,  daggers  and  poisons  would 
be  blessings  indeed,  blessings  fought  for  more  earnestly  than  crowns 
on  earth!  He  tells  you  of  an  eternal  hell,  which  sin  has  merited, 
and  to  which  sin  is  sinking  you,  and  do  you  believe?  OW!  if  you 
did,  you  would  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come. 

A  friend  tells  you  of  some  important  good  that  you  may  obtain: 
you  follow  it.    Of  some  pleasures  you  may  enjoy:  you  pursue  them. 


168  APPENDIX. 

Why?  Because  you  believe  his  word,  and  believe  they  will  increase 
your  satisfaction.  Perhaps  you  are  ill.  An  acquaintance  tells  you 
of  a  medicine  that  is  an  infallible  antidote  to  your  disorder:  you  take 
it.  Why?  have  you  ever  tried  its  virtues?  No:  but  you  believe  him 
who  has.  In  all  these  cases  you  are  a  believer,  and  faith  leads  you 
to  pursue  desired  good. 

God  tells  you  in  his  word  that,  pitying  your  misery,  and  concern- 
ed for  your  happiness,  he  gave  his  best  beloved  to  suffer  in  your 
place.  This  divine  Friend  calls  you  to  follow  him,  and  tells  you  of 
pardon,  peace,  and  Heaven.  He  assures  you  that  eternal  life  is  the 
heritage  of  his  disciples.  Now  would  he  make  you  an  heir  of  Hea- 
ven; but  beyond  the  grave  will  never  extend  to  you  a  pitying,  help- 
ping  hand.  All  this  he  declares  to  you  in  his  word.  You  profess, 
perhaps,  to  believe  it  all,  and.  Oh  dreadful,  you  slight  it  all.  Do 
you  believe  him?  What  infatuation !  what  want  of  common  sense 
to  suppose  you  do  !  No !  if  you  did,  you  would  flee  to  the  shelter  of 
his  cross,  and  find  salvation  there.  No!  if  you  did  believe  him,  you 
would  not  prefer  earth  to  Heaven,  and  a  moment  to  eternity.  No! 
if  you  did  believe  him,  you  would  not  continue  dying  of  sin,  and  care- 
less of  the  great  Physician.  Did  you  really  believe  what  the  Son  of 
God  reveals,  you  would  follow  him  as  your  Guide,  your  Saviour,  your 
all.  And  while  you  neglect  this  what  are  you  but  a  practical  infidel, 
and  in  one  respect  one  of  the  worst  kind  of  infidels?  It  is  natural 
for  those  who  reject  his  divine  authority,  to  slight  his  discoveries,  but 
you  profess  yourself  his  disciple,  and  yet,  by  a  careless  life,  imitate 
the  conduct  of  infidels  ! 

Ah !  what  solemn  scenes  will  soon  open  upon  you !  an  endless 
world  and  all  its  endless  joys  or  woes  ;  the  mighty  Redeemer  and 
the  eternal  God.  Were  there  only  a  probability  of  that  solemn 
world,  it  might  be  sufticient  to  make  a  reasonable  creature  indiffer- 
ent to  one  so  transitory  and  perishing  as  this ;  but  here  it  is  not 
barely  probability,  it  is  certainty;  and  yet  will  you  grasp  at  the  pass- 
ing shadows  of  this  world,  and  neglect  the  endless  realities  of  the 
other !  Now  you  say  of  a  part  of  life,  It  is  gone,  yet  you  look  for- 
ward, and  hope  for  other  years  to  come  ;  but  what  will  be  your  state, 
when  looking  backward,  you  must  say.  Time  is  gone :  and  looking 
forward  Eternity  is  come.  Oh  that  awful,  that  dreadful  eternity  ' 
how  will  it  torment  the  murderers  of  time !  liow  will  it  teach  the 
thoughtless  sinner,  and  the  mere  nominal  Christian,  their  folly  and 


APPENDIX.  169 

tiieir  madness !  Your  conduct  is  not  only  unwise  and  unreasonable 
in  professing  to  believe  the  Bible,  yet  neglecting  religion,  but  your 
guilt  is  great,  and  your  lot  is  wretched.  Think  of  the  love  of  the 
Lord  Jesus,  and  how  aggravated  must  your  guillbe  in  neglecting  him. 
When  the  apostle  refers  to  this  subject,  he  represents  this  love  as 
incomprehensible :  '*  that  ye  may  be  able  to  comprehend  with  all 
saints  what  is  the  uieadth  and  length,  and  depth,  and  licight,  and  to 
know  the  love  of  Christ,  which  passeth  knowledge."  We  have  rea- 
son to  believe  the  Saviours  incarnation,  the  most  amazing  event 
that  ever  happened,  even  in  the  records  of  eternity;  and  to  believe 
that  through  an  eternity  to  come  it  will  never  have  an  equal. 

Were  "  all  the  love  of  all  the  men  that  ever  were  or  shall  be  on 
the  earth,  and  all  the  love  of  all  the  angels  in  heaven,  united  in  one 
heart,  it  would  be  a  cold  heart  to  that  which  was  pierced  with  the 
soldier's  spear."  And  do  you  neglect  that  Saviour  who  spread  the 
heavens  abroad,  and  created  the  earth  beneath  you  ?  Do  you  in 
dulge  no  thoughts  of  his  love,  or  let  any  trifling  folly  drive  such 
thoughts  away  ?  Do  you  forget  the  eternal  bliss  of  heaven,  and  the 
bitter  agonies  and  bloody  sufferings  of  the  compassionate  Sa\nour  ? 
and  forget  all  these  for  trifles  so  mean,  that  they  would  not  drive 
from  your  thoughts  one  day  of  promised  pleasure  7  and  yet  they  can 
induce  you  to  forget  a  gracious  God,  a  crucified  Saviour,  and  an 
eternal  world.  Ah !  foolish  creature  and  unwise,  thus  to  requite 
the  Lord  and  Giver  of  salvation  ! 

Surely  the  motives  that  have  been  mentioned  should  be  sufficient 
to  lead  you  no  longer  to  rest  satisfied  with  being  nominally  a  Chris- 
tian, but  to  constrain  you  to  devote  yourself  to  God.  But  other 
motives  may  be  urged.  Think  of  the  countless  mei-cies  of  the  JNIost 
High.  God  made  you  what  you  are,  and  gave  you  your  exalted, 
place  in  the  scale  of  being.  You  might  have  been  a  brute,  but  he 
blessed  you  with  a  human  form,  and  an  immortal  soul.  You  enjoy 
the  use  of  reason.  It  is  his  gift.  You  might  have  been  an  idiot  or 
a  maniac.  Do  you  possess  hearing,  speech,  sight  ?  Can  you  taste, 
feel,  smell  ?  It  is  he  who  has  blessed  you  with  these  powers  ;  you 
might  have  been  deaf,  dumb,  and  blind,  unable  to  smell,  or  feel,  or 
taste.  Perhaps  you  were  born  to  the  enjoyment  of  wealth :  consider 
that,  but  for  his  goodness,  you  might  have  been  a  beggar's  or  a  gip- 
sy's child.  If  not  wealthy,  you  are  probably  placed  in  a  situation 
■which  affords  you  many  temporal  comforts.  He  placed  you  there. 
15 


170  APPENDIX. 

You  might  have  been  an  Arab,  wandering  and  famigshing  in  burning 
deserts  ;  a  Koon-kee,  dwelling  with  the  wild  beasts  in  dens  or  trees } 
a  Bushman  or  a  Hottentot,  sunk  almost  to  a  level  with  the  brute 
creation.  You  have  had  parents  or  friends,  whose  love  cheered  and 
blessed  your  early  years.  God  gave  them.  You  might  have  been 
born  where  heathenism  destroys  natural  affection,  and  parents  offer 
their  children  to  Moloch.  God  has  been  kind  in  fixing  your  lot ; 
and  has  he  not  been  as  kind  in  the  dealings  of  his  providence?  Of 
how  many  comforts  has  he  been  the  Giver !  through  how  many 
years  has  he  been  your  Preserver !  Your  body  is  formed  like  a  de- 
licate yet  complicated  machine,  and  one  part  disordered  might  have 
disorganized  all  the  rest.  Yet  he  has  kept  its  parts  in  action,  and 
preserved  and  regulated  the  whole. 

Survey  your  past  years.  They  have  been  years  of  mercy.  He 
has  watched  over  you  by  day  and  by  night*  How  many  days  of 
ease  have  you  enjoyed !  How  many  nights  of  security  have  you 
passed,  when,  sunk  in  sleep  and  insensibility,  you  have  had  none  to 
secure  you  but  God  !  Have  you  enjoyed  health  ?  He  gave  it.  Has 
sickness,  if  it  visited  you,  yet  made  but  a  transient  visit  ?  He  or- 
dered its  departure,  raised  you  from  a  bed  of  pain,  and  brightened 
your  pallid  countenance  with  the  returning  bloom  of  health.  Have 
you  lived  many  years,  and  never,  even  for  a  day,  been  destitute  of 
needful  food  and  decent  clothing?  God  has  supplied  these  wants 
through  all  the  days  of  those  departed  years-  Have  you,  from  the 
moment  of  your  birth  to  this  present  hour,  had  friends  who  have 
been  the  solace  of  your  life  ?  God  gave  those  friends.  Perhaps 
you  have  seen  twenty,  thirty,  or  more  years  roll  away ;  can  you  say 
of  one  day  in  all  those  years.  That  day  God  forgot  me — that  day  I 
had  nothing  from  his  bounty  ?  You  know  you  cannot ;  though  you 
doubtless  can  say,  I  forgot  him  for  many  long  rebellious  years. 
Through  what  changing  scenes  has  he  led  you,  and  still  been  uni- 
formly kind !  and  so  kind  that  neither  ingratitude  nor  rebellion  hag 
ever  checked  the  stream  of  his  mercies.  He  blessed  you  in  child- 
hood ;  he  watched  over  you  in  youth  ;  and  if  riper  years  have  rolled 
over  your  head,  he  has  crowned  those  years  with  all  the  mercies 
they  have  brought  you.  Through  how  many  dangers  has  he  led 
you  !  from  how  many  storms  has  he  sheltered  you  ! 

Kind  in  providence,  has  he  not  been  kinder  still  in  grace  "?     How 
much  has  God  done  to  make  you  happy  for  ever !     Compare  your 


APPENDIX.  171 

lot  with  the  lot  of  millions  !  your  holy  light  with  their  degrading 
darkness  I  Some  compute  six  hundred  millions  of  pagans  to  exist 
on  earth.  You  might  have  been  one,  but  God  fixed  your  lot  where 
the  Gospel  spreads  a  cheering  day.  There  are  perhaps  one  hundred 
millions  of  papists,  most  of  them  sunk  in  ignoi-ance.  Why  are  you 
not  one  ?  Why  were  you  not  born  where,  instead  of  learning  to 
adore  God  and  the  Lamb,  you  would  have  been  taught  to  worship 
*'  silver  saviours  and  saints  of  gold?"  and  nursed  up  in  superstition 
and  vice,  have  Hved  the  slave  of  sin,  believing  that  you  couid  pur- 
chase of  antichrist  a  pardon  for  your  crimes  ?  Have  you  a  Bible  ? 
Millions  never  saw  its  holy  pages.  Why  have  you  that  pi-ecious 
book  ?     God  bestowed  it  on  you  ! 

But  I  address  you  as  a  partaker  of  still  greater  mercies.  Think 
of  God  so  loN-ing  the  world,  that  he  gave  his  only-begotten  Son,  that 
whosoever  believeth  in  him,  may  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting 
life.  Think  of  God  commending  his  love  toward  us,  in  that  while 
we  were  yet  sinners,  Christ  died  for  us  ;  and  O  what  miracles  of  love 
have  been  manifested  to  you  !  Are  these  rich  mercies  in  possession, 
richer  in  prospect,  all  the  gift  of  that  much  injured,  yet  still  benevo- 
lent Being,  God,  and  can  he  expect,  or  can  you  be  willing  to  offer 
less  in  return  than  all  you  have  and  are  ?  Has  he  given  you  life  and 
health,  a  thousand  comforts,  and  more  than  doubled  all  in  giving 
Christ,  and  will  you  not  devote  to  him  yourself  and  your  all  ?  Would 
he  give  you  Heaven,  and  is  it  much  to  devote  to  him  a  span  of  time 
on  earth  ?  0  rather  pray.  Merciful  God !  little,  is  the  most  I  ever 
can  devote  to  thee!  and  let  me  not  make  that  little  less,  by  offering 
a  heart  but  half  set  on  thee,  and  offering  a  Ufe  but  half  devoted  to 
thee  !  Rather,  0  rather,  whatever  others  do,  enable  me  to  offer  to 
thee  my  heart,  and  my  head,  and  my  hands,  my  body  and  my  soul, 
and  all  I  have,  and  all  I  am,  an  unworthy  and  insignificant,  yet  a 
living,  and,  through  Jesus  Christ,  an  acceptable  sacrifice ! 

Whatever  you  are,  if  you  are  not  a  humble  follower  of  the  Saviour, 
your  state  is  fearful  in  the  extreme.  In  those  blessings  that  form  the 
Christian's  portion,  you  have  no  share.  God  is  not  your  reconciled 
Father.  Jesus  Christ  is  not  your  Saviour  and  Shepherd:  Heaven 
is  not  your  home.  As  sure  as  the  scriptures  are  true,  you  are  an 
heir  of  death,  a  slave  of  satan,  a  child  of  wrath,  an  enemy  of  God,  a 
traveller  to  hell.  Every  moment  you  are  on  the  brink  of  destruction. 
There  is  only  the  breath  in  your  nostrils  between  you  and  hell ;  and 


172  APPENDIX. 

uothinf;^  is  wanting  to  sink  you  there  but  God's  command.  A  cold, 
an  accident,  or  almost  any  trifle  may  be  sufficient  to  cut  your  thread 
of  life,  and  plunge  you  in  eternal  despair.  The  place  of  misery  is 
your  own  place,  you  are  ready  for  it.  Your  sins  are  all  unpardoned 
— wrath  follows  you — hell  is  wailing  to  receive  you.  Death,  your 
dread  foe,  is  drawing  nigh.  Your  last  moment,  your  last  comfort, 
are  approaching.  O,  my  fellow  sinner,  think  of  eternity,  never  wili 
that  time  arrive  when  your  soul  shall  cease  to  live.  Were  one  per- 
son to  enjoy  all  the  pleasure  that  has  ever  been  enjoyed  in  this  world, 
by  all  the  millions  that  have  lived,  all  that  united  would  be  but  as  an 
atom  of  delight,  a  moment  of  pleasure,  compared  with  that  enduring 
bliss,  which  ransomed  souls  possess  in  the  kingdom  of  God.  And 
were  all  the  sufferings  that  through  almost  six  thousand  years  have 
embittered  so  many  lives,  and  broken  so  many  hearts ;  were  all  the 
sickness  and  pains,  and  all  the  dying  pangs  of  the  countless  millions 
that  death  has  swept  away ;  were  all  these  united  and  poured  upon 
one  uniiappy  head,  it  would  be  less  than  a  drop  compared  with  those 
mountainous  billows  of  misery  which,  in  the  world  to  come,  will 
overwhelm  every  neglecter  of  the  Son  of  God.  These  all  would 
not  form  eternal  sufferings,  nor  amount  to  evex-lasting  soi-row.  These 
immense  sums  of  happiness  or  pain  would  have  an  end,  but  the  joy 
or  sorrow  to  which  you  are  hastening  can  have  none.  How  highly 
you  value  this  fleeting  life  !  How  precious  is  even  the  uncertain 
prospect  of  a  few  years  of  peace  and  ease  !  How  bitter  are  sufferings 
when  no  end  of  them  can  be  seen !  How  bitter  is  it  to  the  galley- 
slave  to  think,  that  the  chain  which  binds  him,  binds  him  for  life  ! 
How  severe  the  sentence  of  perpetual  imprisonment !  were  such  your 
cii'cumstances,  how  insupportable  would  the  load  of  misfortune  ap- 
pear !  These  chains  for  life  !  this  imprisonment  for  life  !  What  ten- 
fold bitterness  would  the  words  "  for  life,"  add  to  the  prison  and  the 
chain.  How  great  are  sorrows  when  only  death  can  end  them  !  Oh 
what  will  eternal  sorrow  be  !  sorrows  to  which  no  death  can  ever 
bring  relief!  Oh  what  will  be  the  wretched  creature's  lot  who  has 
through  eternity  to  exclaim,  "  Mercy  once  wooed  me,  but  mercy  is 
gone  for  ever !  God  pitied  me,  but  has  now  left  me  for  ever  !  the 
Saviour  I  slighted  is  departed  for  ever !  for  ever  !  Oh  that  dreadful 
FOR  EVER !  Peace,  and  hope,  and  comfort,  all  have  left  me  for  ever ! 
and  now  this  hellish  prison  is  my  abode  for  ever  !  This  dismal  gloom ! 
this  eternal  heartache,  this  tormenting  flame,  are  my  sad  portion  for 


APPENDIX.  173 

evef !  0  could  that  eternity  be  shortened !  O  could  one  hope  gleam 
across  the  eternal  gloom  !  O  could  death,  though  at  the  distance  of 
infinite  years,  appear  to  end  my  sorrows  and  my  being  !  but  no  such 
comfort  can  visit  me  !  There  is  no  gleam  of  hope  in  the  distance  of 
eternal  night.  There  is  no  death  that  can  end  my  being.  The  death 
I  suffer  is  the  death  that  never  dies.  God,  and  Christ,  and  hope, 
and  mercy,  and  peace,  and  ease,  are  all  gone !  woe !  woe  is  me ! 
gone  for  ever  and  for  ever ! 

Shall  this  be  your  lot  ?  yours  who  are  now  reading  this  page  ?  It 
must,  it  will,  if  you  neglect  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

If  through  divine  grace  you  devote  yourself  to  God,  and  look  to 
him  to  lead  you  in  the  way  everlasting,  then  make  his  word  your 
guide.  Prize  the  Bible.  If  you  read  many  books,  still  let  the  Bi- 
ble be  esteemed  above  them  all ;  if  but  one,  let  -that  one  be  the 
Bible. 

Let  it  never  be  forgotten  by  you,  that  those  Christians,  whose 
piety  has  shone  with  the  brightest  lustre,  whose  hopes  have  been 
fullest  of  immortality,  are  those  who  have  loved  and  valued  most 
the  word  of  God.  It  is  related  of  De  Renty,  a  French  nobleman 
of  most  eminent  piety,  that  he  used  every  day  on  his  knees  to  read 
three  chapters  in  the  word  of  God.  On  the  other  hand,  how  many 
Christians,  of  even  eminent  piety,  when  leaving  the  world,  have  la- 
mented their  folly  in  not  having  studied  the  scriptures  more,  and  hu- 
man writings  less.  When  that  eminent  Christian,  James  Hervey, 
who  died  in  triumph,  "  apprehended  himself  to  be  near  the  close  of 
life,  with  eternity  full  in  view,  he  wrote  to  a  friend  at  a  distance  to 
tell  him  what  were  his  sentiments  in  that  awful  situation.  '  I  have 
been  too  fond,'  said  he,  'of  reading  every  thing  valuable  and  ele- 
gant that  has  been  penned  in  our  language,  and  been  peculiarly 
charmed  with  the  historians,  orators,  and  poets  of  antiquity :  but 
were  I  to  renew  my  studies,  I  would  take  my  leave  of  those  accom- 
plished trifles  :  I  would  resign  the  delights  of  modern  wits,  amuse- 
ment, and  eloquence,  and  devote  my  attention  to  the  scriptures  of 
truth.  I  would  sit  with  much  greater  assiduity  at  my  divine  Mas- 
ter's feet,  and  desire  to  know  nothing  in  comparison  of  Jesus  Christ, 
and  him  crucified.' " 

What  is  there  in  human  science  compared  with  the  solemn  dis- 
coveries of  the  Bible?  Other  books  are  for  time,  but  this  for  eter- 
nity !     Other  knowledge  amuses  a  few  short  moments  here,  this  di- 

15* 


174  APPENDIX. 

rects  to  never-ending  good  hereafter.  Other  wisdom  pleases  or  pro- 
fits for  the  transient  day  of  life:  this  is  the  source  of  unfaihng 
blessings  for  infinite  periods  beyond  the  hour  when  stars  and  sun 
shall  cease  to  shine.  Other  learning  may  gain  the  applause  of  a 
few  frail  creatures,  whose  applause  must  soon  be  hushed  for  ever 
by  the  hands  of  death ;  but  divine  knowledge  will  direct  the  soul  to 
the  raptures  of  eternal  day,  and  insure  the  approbation  of  the  King 
of  kings,  and  the  welcome  congratulations  of  angelic  myriads,  in 
the  presence  of  Him,  who  is,  and  who  was,  and  who  is  to  come  ;  the 
Eternal,  the  Almighty.  Thus  as  much  as  eternity  excels  time  in 
importance,  as  much  as  an  infinite  life  of  bliss  outweighs  the  advan- 
tages of  a  fleeting  hour ;  so  much  the  precious  Bible  excels  in  value 
all  that  orators,  philosophers,  historians  and  poets  ever  wrote ;  all 
that  human  wisdom  ever  inspired;  all  that  a  vain  world  ever 
extolled. 

Perhaps  after  all  that  can  be  urged  to  gain  your  heart  to  God, 
you  are  one  that  will  trifle  with  eternal  things.  If  so,  what  re- 
mains for  you  but  a  fearful  looking  for  of  judgment  and  fiery  indigna- 
tion. Oh  mournful  folly  !  sad  infatuation  !  "  The  wretch  that  is  con- 
demned to  die  to-morrow  cannot  forget  it,"  and  can  you,  whose 
death  is  equally  certain,  though  perhaps  not  quite  so  near,  can  you 
forget  that  Gospel  which  brings  life  and  immortality  to  light,  that  re- 
ligion which  gives  the  only  title  to  the  mansions  in  the  skies  !  Oh, 
if  you  now  forget  it,  the  time  is  coming,  when  you  will  do  so  no 
more.  When  the  frame  of  nature  shall  be  dissolved,  when  the  hea- 
vens shall  shrivel  up  like  a  scroll,  and  the  vast  world  be  sinking  in 
final  flames,  when  the  great  and  mighty  hills  start  from  their  places, 
and  wretched  men  long  to  hide  beneath  their  burning  rains :  then  you 
will  not  forget  it.  When  standing  v/ith  all  the  risen  dead  before  the 
judgment-seat  of  the  Loi-d  Jesus,  then  you  will  not  forget  it ;  then 
whilst  in  awful  silence  you  await  your  eternal  doom  you  may  recol- 
lect this  very  exhortation  to  receive  the  Saviour  ;  and  when  fixed  in 
your  eternal  home,  amidst  the  wailings  of  unutterable  despair,  then 
you  will  never  forget  it. 


APPENDIX.  175 


IV. TO    THE    SINCERELY   PIOUS. 

Perhaps  the  eye  that  reads  this  page  is  an  eye  that  sees  no 
glory  like  that  it  sees  in  Christ ;  yet  if  you  have  reason  to  hope  it  is 
so,  still  it  is  needful  often  to  commune  with  your  own  heart;  often 
to  examine  your  own  condition ;  and  often  to  look  up  in  fervent  pray- 
er for  grace  to  advance  in  the  divine  life.  Let  this  little  volume 
prompt  you  to  prize  the  Lord  Jesus,  as  a  believer.  A  martyr, 
when  asked  if  he  loved  not  his  wife  and  family,  replied,  "  Yes,  if 
the  world  were  gold,  and  were  mine  to  dispose  of,  I  would  give  it 
to  live  with  them,  though  it  were  but  in  prison ;  yet  my  soul  and 
Christ  are  dearer  to  me  than  all." 

Is  such  your  value  for  the  Saviour  ?  Can  you  for  his  sake  endure 
the  frowns  of  friends  ?  the  ridicule  of  former  companions  ?  Can  you 
deny  yourself,  your  wisdom,  your  companions,  your  pleasures,  your 
profits,  your  ease,  your  character,  your  liberty,  your  life,  and  sacri- 
fice all  that  is  dearest  to  your  heart,  for  Jesus'  sake  ?  If  he  esteems 
you  wise,  care  you  not  who  deems  you  foolish  ;  if  he  smiles,  care  you 
not  who  frowns  ;  if  he  approves,  it  is  to  you  a  little  matter  who  con- 
demns ;  if  he  bless,  it  is  to  you  comparatively  a  trifle,  though  all 
around  you  curse. 

Live  as  a  believer ;  let  it  be  your  daily  prayer  that  faith  may 
govern  your  heart,  direct  your  choice,  rule  your  conduct,  fire  your 
love,  win  your  desires,  strengthen  your  hopes,  and  enable  you  to  live 
on  earth  as  a  stranger  travelling  to  Heaven.  If  it  be  genuine,  if  it 
be  saving,  these  will  be  its  effects. 

Make  it  your  study  and  prayer  to  bring  faith  into  daily  and  hourly 
exercise.  You  believe  in  a  gracious,  an  all-seeing,  and  almighty  God  : 
act  as  in  his  sight.  You  believe  in  an  atoning  Saviour :  look  daily  to 
him  as  your  Hfe,  your  all.  You  believe  in  eternal  judgment :  now 
live  as  one  whose  actions  and  thoughts  must  then  be  sci-utinized  ;  live 
as  you  will  wish  to  have  done,  when  standing  to  receive  the  sentence 
of  your  Judge.  You  believe  that  there  is  a  happy  Heaven:  pursue 
it  with  that  earnestness  which  eternal  life  demands.  You  believe 
that  there  is  a  miserable  prison  of  eternal  punishment :  watch  and 
pray  against  sin,  the  source  of  misery,  the  cause  of  the  creation  of 
hell.     You  believe  that  your  way  to  eternity  is  beset  with  snares  X 


176  APPENDIX. 

watch  and  pray  lest  you  enter  into  temptation.  Ti^ji  believe  that  you 
are  dark  in  your  reason,  and  weak  in  your  power :  listen  then  with 
all  humility  to  him,  whose  knowledge  is  as  boundless  as  yours  is  con- 
fined. Receive  implicitly  whatever  Jesus  has  reveale<|i*f ■  and  let  it 
be  enough  to  engage  your  belief,  that  he  has  said  it.  iTou  believe 
that  you  are  weak ;  let  frequent  daily  prayer  implore  the  guidance 
and  strength  of  your  God  and  Saviour,  to  attend  you  through  the 
world,  down  to  death,  and  up  to  glory.  Thus  live  as  a  believer. 
And  when  a  few  more  suns  have  risen  and  set ;  when  a  few  more 
days,  and  weeks,  and  months  have  rolled  away  ;  when  you  have  suf- 
fered a  few  more  of  the  pains,  and  enjoyed  a  few  more  of  the  plea- 
sures of  life  ;  your  days  will  be  numbered,  your  time  will  be  no  long- 
er, your  farewell  must  be  taken  of  earthly  comfort,  and  your  free- 
dom from  earthly  pain  will  be  complete.  Then  will  you  see  what 
you  now  believe.  Faith  will  then  be  changed  to  sight,  and  hope 
be  lost  in  certainty,  possession,  and  eternal  joy. 


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